Why Investors Are Abuzz About These 5 Stocks Today

CSX Beats Estimates

Although CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) earnings may have been made public one hour earlier than estimated, the company nevertheless turned in better than expected second quarter results, with earnings of $0.47 per share on revenue of $2.7 billion, which beat estimates by $0.03 per share and $10 million, respectively. Sales fell by 11.8% year-over-year while the operating ratio rose by 210 basis points to 68.9%. Due to the strong dollar, low commodity prices, and energy market transition, management expects full year earnings per share to decline. Management is committed to achieving a mid-60’s operating ratio over the long run. 40 funds that we follow owned shares of CSX Corporation (NASDAQ:CSX) at the end of March, down by five quarter-over-quarter.

Monsanto Exploring Alternatives to Bayer

According to Bloomberg, Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) has talked with BASF SE over a potential combination of the two companies’ agrochemicals businesses. In the proposed transaction, Monsanto would acquire BASF’s agriculture solutions unit in return for newly-issued shares of Monsanto. Given that the discussions are in an early stage, there is no guarantee of a deal coming together. Monsanto could still sell itself to Bayer, however, as Monsanto’s board has apparently been split between the two options. The number of funds in our system with holdings in Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) rose by 13 quarter-over-quarter to 51 as of the end of March.

EU to Bring More Charges Against Google 

Per the Wall Street Journal, the EU antitrust regulator is planning to file more charges against Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)‘s Google division as early as today. The charges relate to Google’s shopping service and its stringent contractual terms over its advertising service. The additional charges could result in more fines and additional restrictions. Alphabet shares have been relatively flat year-to-date, falling by 5% since the beginning of the year. 155 funds in our database owned Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)’s Class A shares at the end of March, while 142 were owners of the stock’s Class C shares.

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