Welch & Forbes LLC Sells 314 Shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX)

Welch & Forbes LLC cut its stake in shares of CSX Co. (NASDAQ:CSX) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,168 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 314 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in CSX were worth $769,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CSX. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in shares of CSX during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new position in CSX in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of CSX by 228.4% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 995 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 692 shares during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of CSX during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Avion Wealth increased its stake in shares of CSX by 450.5% in the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 1,002 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CSX Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:CSX traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $34.01. The stock had a trading volume of 2,156,426 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,127,338. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $36.06 and a 200 day moving average of $34.64. The company has a market capitalization of $66.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.66, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.19. CSX Co. has a one year low of $29.03 and a one year high of $40.12.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The transportation company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.01. CSX had a return on equity of 29.58% and a net margin of 24.75%. The firm had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.48 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that CSX Co. will post 1.95 EPS for the current year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 29th were issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. This is a positive change from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. CSX’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CSX has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of CSX from $37.00 to $36.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of CSX from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Susquehanna increased their price target on CSX from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on CSX from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.00.

About CSX

CSX Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides rail-based freight transportation services. The company offers rail services; and transportation of intermodal containers and trailers, as well as other transportation services, such as rail-to-truck transfers and bulk commodity operations. It also transports chemicals, agricultural and food products, minerals, automotive, forest products, fertilizers, and metals and equipment; and coal, coke, and iron ore to electricity-generating power plants, steel manufacturers, and industrial plants, as well as exports coal to deep-water port facilities.