Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of CSX Call Options (NASDAQ:CSX)

CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) was the target of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Traders purchased 24,847 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 89% compared to the average volume of 13,119 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $54.00 price objective (up from $53.00) on shares of CSX in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $52.00 price target (up from $49.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on CSX from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Stephens began coverage on CSX in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Evercore set a $53.00 price objective on CSX in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CSX currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.20.

Insider Transactions at CSX

In related news, Director John Zillmer sold 19,500 shares of CSX stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.24, for a total value of $999,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 334,214 shares in the company, valued at $17,125,125.36. This trade represents a 5.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CSX

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Evolve Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of CSX in the second quarter valued at $693,000. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC acquired a new stake in CSX in the second quarter valued at $8,145,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in CSX in the second quarter valued at $7,609,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG acquired a new stake in CSX in the second quarter valued at $6,598,000. Finally, First National Bank of Omaha bought a new position in shares of CSX in the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,248,000. 73.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CSX Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ CSX opened at $50.72 on Wednesday. CSX has a 52-week low of $33.63 and a 52-week high of $53.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.84. The stock has a market cap of $93.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $48.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.67.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The transportation company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.96 billion. CSX had a net margin of 23.97% and a return on equity of 25.94%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.44 earnings per share. Analysts expect that CSX will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

CSX Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 30th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. CSX’s payout ratio is currently 29.02%.

About CSX

CSX Corporation is a transportation company whose primary business is freight railroading through its CSX Transportation subsidiary. The company operates an extensive rail network across the eastern United States, serving major industrial centers, population hubs, ports and distribution markets.

CSX transports a broad range of products, including chemicals, agricultural and food products, forest products, minerals, metals, automotive goods and other manufactured merchandise. Its services also include intermodal transportation, which combines rail service with trucks and containers, as well as the movement of coal and other bulk commodities.

The company traces its roots to the formation of CSX Corporation in 1980 through the merger of Chessie System and Seaboard Coast Line Industries.