Revenue growth remains highly volatile, fluctuating between a 7.0% contraction and a 1.7% expansion, while operating margins have compressed from a 38.7% peak in 2024Q2 to 36.0% as of 2026Q1.
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 | Dec'17 | Dec'16 | Dec'15 | Dec'14 | Dec'13 | Dec'12 | Dec'11 | Dec'10 | Dec'09 | Dec'08 | Dec'07 | Dec'06 | Dec'05 | Dec'04 | Dec'03 | Dec'02 | Dec'01 | Dec'00 | Dec'99 | Dec'98 | Dec'97 | Dec'96 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 14.15B | 14.09B | 14.54B | 14.66B | 14.85B | 12.52B | 10.58B | 11.94B | 12.25B | 11.41B | 11.07B | 11.81B | 12.67B | 12.03B | 11.76B | 11.74B | 10.64B | 9.04B | 11.26B | 10.03B | 9.57B | 8.62B | 8.02B | 7.79B | 8.15B | 8.11B | 8.19B | 10.81B | 9.9B | 10.62B | 10.54B |
| Revenue Growth % | -0.92% | -3.08% | -0.8% | -1.32% | 18.62% | 18.32% | -11.34% | -2.56% | 7.38% | 3.06% | -6.28% | -6.77% | 5.35% | 2.3% | 0.11% | 10.41% | 17.64% | -19.67% | 12.21% | 4.85% | 11% | 7.46% | 2.91% | -4.4% | 0.52% | -0.99% | -24.23% | 9.22% | -6.81% | 0.81% | 0.3% |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 8.84B | 9.41B | 9.03B | 9.05B | 9.14B | 7.23B | 6.14B | 7.08B | 7.51B | 7.55B | 7.7B | 8.09B | 8.88B | 8.46B | 8.39B | 8.2B | 7.43B | 6.72B | 7.61B | 7.02B | 6.95B | 6.53B | 6.47B | 3.47B | 4.09B | 4.16B | 4.68B | 4.16B | 6.12B | 6.3B | 6.38B |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 66.75% | 62.13% | 61.77% | 61.52% | 57.76% | 58.03% | 59.35% | 61.3% | 66.15% | 69.52% | 68.45% | 70.09% | 70.31% | 71.39% | 69.85% | 69.87% | 74.33% | 67.63% | 69.98% | 72.68% | 75.81% | 80.69% | 44.49% | 50.18% | 51.34% | 57.15% | 38.52% | 61.84% | 59.34% | 60.6% |
| Gross Profit | 5.31B | 4.68B | 5.51B | 5.6B | 5.72B | 5.29B | 4.44B | 4.85B | 4.74B | 3.86B | 3.37B | 3.73B | 3.79B | 3.57B | 3.36B | 3.54B | 3.21B | 2.32B | 3.64B | 3.01B | 2.61B | 2.08B | 1.57B | 4.33B | 4.06B | 3.95B | 3.51B | 6.65B | 3.78B | 4.32B | 4.15B |
| Gross Margin % | 37.54% | 33.25% | 37.87% | 38.23% | 38.48% | 42.24% | 41.97% | 40.65% | 38.7% | 33.85% | 30.48% | 31.55% | 29.91% | 29.69% | 28.61% | 30.15% | 30.13% | 25.67% | 32.37% | 30.02% | 27.32% | 24.19% | 19.56% | 55.51% | 49.82% | 48.66% | 42.85% | 61.48% | 38.16% | 40.66% | 39.4% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | -14.91% | -1.73% | -1.98% | 8.07% | 19.07% | -8.45% | 2.34% | 22.76% | 14.46% | -9.45% | -1.66% | 6.13% | 6.16% | -5.03% | 10.48% | 38.09% | -36.29% | 20.99% | 15.23% | 25.32% | 32.89% | -63.73% | 6.53% | 2.91% | 12.42% | -47.19% | 75.99% | -12.53% | 4.02% | 0.63% |
| Operating Expenses | 579M | 164M | 140M | 136M | -238M | 130M | 107M | 107M | 98M | 114M | 100M | 142M | 176M | 140M | 991M | 137M | 134M | 36M | 880M | 782M | 698M | 746M | 557M | 3.7B | 7.63B | 2.84B | -191M | 9.75B | 10.02B | 10.15B | 10.16B |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 1.16% | 0.96% | 0.93% | -1.6% | 1.04% | 1.01% | 0.9% | 0.8% | 1% | 0.9% | 1.2% | 1.39% | 1.16% | 8.43% | 1.17% | 1.26% | 0.4% | 7.82% | 7.8% | 7.3% | 8.66% | 6.95% | 47.48% | 93.55% | 35.01% | -2.33% | 90.16% | 101.27% | 95.56% | 96.4% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 0 | 0 | -50M | -29M | -79M | -64M | -42M | -43M | -38M | -32M | 24M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.07B | 2.96B | 2.63B | 2.96B | 2.99B | 2.93B | 3.44B | 557M | 993M | 3.5B | 3.57B | 3.56B | 1.49B | 4.24B | 4.34B | 4.3B |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | - | -0.34% | -0.2% | -0.53% | -0.51% | -0.4% | -0.36% | -0.31% | -0.28% | 0.22% | - | - | - | - | 26.17% | 27.8% | 29.08% | 26.25% | 29.77% | 30.63% | 39.9% | 6.95% | 12.74% | 42.91% | 44% | 43.5% | 13.79% | 42.86% | 40.83% | 40.85% |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | 2M | 164M | 190M | 165M | -159M | 194M | 149M | 150M | 136M | 146M | 76M | 142M | 176M | 140M | 991M | -2.94B | -2.82B | -2.59B | -2.08B | -2.2B | -2.23B | -2.69B | 0 | 2.71B | 4.13B | -729M | -3.75B | 8.26B | 5.78B | 5.81B | 5.85B |
| Operating Income | 4.73B | 4.52B | 5.37B | 5.47B | 5.95B | 5.16B | 4.33B | 4.75B | 4.64B | 3.75B | 3.27B | 3.58B | 3.61B | 3.43B | 3.36B | 3.4B | 3.07B | 2.29B | 2.76B | 2.23B | 1.92B | 1.34B | 1.01B | 626M | 1.13B | 957M | 805M | 608M | 1.16B | 1.58B | 1.52B |
| Operating Margin % | 33.45% | 32.08% | 36.91% | 37.3% | 40.09% | 41.2% | 40.96% | 39.75% | 37.9% | 32.85% | 29.58% | 30.34% | 28.52% | 28.52% | 28.61% | 28.99% | 28.87% | 25.27% | 24.55% | 22.22% | 20.02% | 15.54% | 12.62% | 8.03% | 13.82% | 11.8% | 9.83% | 5.62% | 11.72% | 14.9% | 14.45% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | -15.75% | -1.85% | -8.18% | 15.41% | 19.01% | -8.64% | 2.2% | 23.88% | 14.48% | -8.65% | -0.8% | 5.34% | 1.99% | -1.2% | 10.84% | 34.4% | -17.3% | 23.96% | 16.4% | 43.02% | 32.31% | 61.66% | -44.45% | 17.76% | 18.88% | 32.4% | -47.59% | -26.72% | 4.01% | 29.86% |
| EBITDA | 6.4B | 5.8B | 7.05B | 7.1B | 7.46B | 6.58B | 5.72B | 6.09B | 5.97B | 5.06B | 4.58B | 4.79B | 4.76B | 4.53B | 4.42B | 4.38B | 4.02B | 3.19B | 3.68B | 3.12B | 2.78B | 2.17B | 1.74B | 1.27B | 1.78B | 1.58B | 1.41B | 1.23B | 1.79B | 2.27B | 2.14B |
| EBITDA Margin % | 45.25% | 41.14% | 48.5% | 48.46% | 50.2% | 52.54% | 54.03% | 51.05% | 48.77% | 44.38% | 41.33% | 40.57% | 37.6% | 37.7% | 37.61% | 37.3% | 37.78% | 35.32% | 32.71% | 31.1% | 29.08% | 25.2% | 21.72% | 16.28% | 21.79% | 19.47% | 17.15% | 11.37% | 18.08% | 21.38% | 20.33% |
| EBITDA Growth % | -4.62% | -17.8% | -0.72% | -4.73% | 13.33% | 15.06% | -6.17% | 2.01% | 17.99% | 10.67% | -4.53% | 0.59% | 5.07% | 2.53% | 0.96% | 9.01% | 25.84% | -13.26% | 18.02% | 12.11% | 28.08% | 24.68% | 37.27% | -28.55% | 12.48% | 12.38% | 14.32% | -31.34% | -21.18% | 6.02% | 20.88% |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 1.67B | 1.28B | 1.69B | 1.64B | 1.5B | 1.42B | 1.38B | 1.35B | 1.33B | 1.31B | 1.3B | 1.21B | 1.15B | 1.1B | 1.06B | 976M | 947M | 908M | 918M | 890M | 867M | 833M | 730M | 643M | 649M | 622M | 600M | 621M | 630M | 688M | 620M |
| EBIT | 4.8B | 4.59B | 5.39B | 5.64B | 6.09B | 5.67B | 4.38B | 5.05B | 4.94B | 3.69B | 3.32B | 3.68B | 3.59B | 3.48B | 3.53B | 3.44B | 3.1B | 2.32B | 2.67B | 2.35B | 2.26B | 1.49B | 1.09B | -3.16B | -4.25B | -3.88B | -6.69B | -9.23B | -7.23B | -6.81B | -6.87B |
| Net Interest Income | -848M | -844M | -747M | -730M | -700M | -715M | -737M | -689M | -607M | -533M | -569M | -538M | -540M | -554M | -561M | -547M | -551M | -547M | -482M | -362M | -353M | -397M | -414M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Income | 0 | 0 | 85M | 79M | 42M | 7M | 17M | 48M | 32M | 13M | 10M | 6M | 5M | 8M | 5M | 5M | 6M | 11M | 37M | 55M | 41M | 38M | 21M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Expense | 848M | 844M | 832M | 809M | 742M | 722M | 754M | 737M | 639M | 546M | 579M | 544M | 545M | 562M | 566M | 552M | 557M | 558M | 519M | 417M | 394M | 435M | 435M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Income/Expense | -759M | -752M | -811M | -638M | -609M | -208M | -708M | -429M | -339M | -606M | -533M | -446M | -569M | -508M | -399M | -516M | -525M | -524M | -617M | -297M | -53M | -284M | -359M | -361M | -296M | -452M | -472M | -434M | -387M | -400M | -206M |
| Pretax Income | 3.97B | 3.77B | 4.55B | 4.83B | 5.34B | 4.95B | 3.63B | 4.32B | 4.3B | 3.14B | 2.74B | 3.14B | 3.04B | 2.92B | 2.96B | 2.89B | 2.55B | 1.76B | 2.15B | 1.93B | 1.86B | 1.05B | 653M | 265M | 723M | 448M | 277M | 139M | 773M | 1.18B | 1.32B |
| Pretax Margin % | 28.08% | 26.75% | 31.33% | 32.95% | 35.99% | 39.54% | 34.27% | 36.16% | 35.13% | 27.54% | 24.76% | 26.57% | 24.03% | 24.3% | 25.21% | 24.59% | 23.94% | 19.48% | 19.07% | 19.26% | 19.46% | 12.24% | 8.14% | 3.4% | 8.87% | 5.52% | 3.38% | 1.29% | 7.81% | 11.14% | 12.49% |
| Income Tax | 924M | 880M | 1.08B | 1.16B | 1.23B | 1.17B | 862M | 985M | 995M | -2.33B | 1.03B | 1.17B | 1.12B | 1.06B | 1.1B | 1.07B | 983M | 624M | 781M | 706M | 531M | 316M | 219M | 76M | 256M | 155M | 91M | 88M | 236M | 384M | 461M |
| Effective Tax Rate % | 23.25% | 23.35% | 23.82% | 24.04% | 23.03% | 23.63% | 23.77% | 22.82% | 23.12% | -74.12% | 37.47% | 37.28% | 36.7% | 36.21% | 37.28% | 36.91% | 38.61% | 35.43% | 36.39% | 36.54% | 28.52% | 29.95% | 33.54% | 28.68% | 35.41% | 34.6% | 32.85% | 63.31% | 30.53% | 32.46% | 35.03% |
| Net Income | 3.05B | 2.89B | 3.47B | 3.67B | 4.11B | 3.78B | 2.77B | 3.33B | 3.31B | 5.47B | 1.71B | 1.97B | 1.93B | 1.86B | 1.86B | 1.82B | 1.56B | 1.13B | 1.36B | 1.34B | 1.31B | 717M | 339M | 246M | 424M | 293M | 565M | 2M | 537M | 799M | 855M |
| Net Margin % | 21.55% | 20.5% | 23.87% | 25.03% | 27.7% | 30.19% | 26.13% | 27.9% | 27% | 47.95% | 15.48% | 16.65% | 15.2% | 15.51% | 15.82% | 15.52% | 14.7% | 12.47% | 12.13% | 13.32% | 13.69% | 8.32% | 4.23% | 3.16% | 5.2% | 3.61% | 6.9% | 0.02% | 5.43% | 7.52% | 8.12% |
| Net Income Growth % | -5.75% | -16.74% | -5.4% | -10.84% | 8.81% | 36.74% | -16.99% | 0.7% | -39.52% | 219.32% | -12.91% | 2.13% | 3.27% | 0.27% | 2.03% | 16.63% | 38.69% | -17.44% | 2.17% | 1.98% | 82.71% | 111.5% | 37.8% | -41.98% | 44.71% | -48.14% | 28150% | -99.63% | -32.79% | -6.55% | 38.35% |
| Net Income (Continuing) | 3.05B | 2.89B | 3.47B | 3.67B | 4.11B | 3.78B | 2.77B | 3.33B | 3.31B | 5.47B | 1.71B | 1.97B | 1.93B | 1.86B | 1.86B | 1.82B | 1.56B | 1.14B | 1.36B | 1.23B | 1.33B | 739M | 434M | 189M | 410M | 243M | 129M | 32M | 520M | 799M | 855M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 110M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 6M | 5M | 5M | 5M | 10M | 10M | 9M | 15M | 17M | 16M | 15M | 16M | 24M | 21M | 14M | 13M | 14M | 14M | 0 | 0 | 89M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | 1.64 | 1.54 | 1.79 | 1.82 | 1.95 | 1.68 | 1.20 | 1.39 | 1.28 | 2.00 | 0.60 | 0.67 | 0.64 | 0.61 | 0.60 | 0.57 | 0.45 | 0.32 | 0.37 | 0.33 | 0.31 | 0.28 | 0.08 | 0.06 | 0.11 | 0.06 | 0.03 | 0.00 | 0.14 | 0.21 | 0.22 |
| EPS Growth % | -2.4% | -13.97% | -1.65% | -6.67% | 16.07% | 40% | -13.67% | 8.59% | -36% | 233.33% | -10.45% | 4.69% | 4.92% | 1.67% | 5.26% | 26.67% | 40.63% | -13.51% | 12.12% | 6.45% | 10.71% | 231.75% | 33.33% | -42.45% | 75.16% | 85.25% | - | -99.64% | -33.33% | -4.55% | 37.5% |
| EPS (Basic) | - | 1.54 | 1.79 | 1.83 | 1.95 | 1.68 | 1.20 | 1.39 | 1.29 | 2.00 | 0.60 | 0.67 | 0.64 | 0.61 | 0.60 | 0.57 | 0.46 | 0.32 | 0.38 | 0.35 | 0.33 | 0.29 | 0.09 | 0.06 | 0.11 | 0.06 | 0.03 | 0.00 | 0.14 | 0.21 | 0.22 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 1.86B | 1.86B | 1.94B | 2.01B | 2.14B | 2.25B | 2.3B | 2.39B | 2.58B | 2.74B | 2.84B | 2.95B | 3.01B | 3.06B | 3.12B | 3.27B | 3.46B | 3.56B | 3.68B | 4.03B | 4.19B | 4.1B | 4.05B | 3.86B | 4.02B | 4.67B | 3.81B | 3.83B | 3.86B | 3.87B | 3.89B |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 1.86B | 1.86B | 1.94B | 2.01B | 2.14B | 2.25B | 2.3B | 2.39B | 2.57B | 2.73B | 2.84B | 2.95B | 3B | 3.06B | 3.11B | 3.25B | 3.43B | 3.53B | 3.61B | 3.87B | 3.96B | 3.9B | 3.87B | 3.85B | 3.83B | 4.59B | 3.8B | 3.79B | 3.8B | 3.78B | 3.85B |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | 33.64% | 26.8% | 24.05% | 20.71% | 22.19% | 28.82% | 22.91% | 22.7% | 12.94% | 39.7% | 34.88% | 32.66% | 32.17% | 30% | 26.33% | 23.8% | 30.61% | 22.56% | 17.29% | 11.07% | 12.97% | 25.37% | 34.96% | 20.28% | 58.36% | 46.37% | 13100% | 48.79% | 29.41% | 26.08% |
Regulatory and Volume Sensitivity
According to recent quarterly filings, CSX's revenue growth has fluctuated between a 7.0% contraction and a 1.7% expansion, suggesting that the company's top-line performance remains highly sensitive to industrial production cycles and the inherent volatility of its core merchandise and intermodal freight segments across the Eastern network.
The inconsistent revenue trajectory highlights the difficulty of maintaining volume growth in a mature, capital-intensive rail market. Investors should monitor whether the recent return to positive growth in 2026Q1 represents a sustainable recovery or merely a temporary rebound from previous cyclical lows.
As reported in financial statements, CSX's operating margins have oscillated significantly, reaching a peak of 38.7% in 2024Q2 before compressing to 30.4% in 2025Q1, which indicates that the company's ability to maintain profitability is heavily dependent on managing variable costs against fluctuating freight volumes.
The wide variance in operating margins suggests that the company's high fixed-cost structure leaves little room for error when volumes decline. The recent expansion to 36.0% in 2026Q1 warrants further investigation into whether this reflects genuine operational improvements or simply favorable shifts in commodity mix.
Based on CSX's reported figures, the company's operating income has struggled to scale consistently with gross profit, as evidenced by the compression in operating margins during periods of revenue decline, suggesting that the railroad's cost base remains stubbornly resistant to rapid downward adjustments in volume.
The lack of consistent operating leverage implies that the company's Precision Scheduled Railroading model faces challenges in maintaining efficiency during cyclical downturns. Analysts should monitor whether management can decouple operating expenses from volume volatility to protect margins in future periods.
Data from recent income statements suggests that CSX's reliance on legacy industrial hubs and coal-related freight may create long-term margin compression risks, as the structural decline of domestic coal-fired power generation potentially limits the company's ability to maintain historical profitability levels in the coming years.
Short-term margin improvements may be masking the underlying fragility of the company's long-term terminal value. Investors should be wary of the potential for increased regulatory oversight from the Surface Transportation Board to force higher service-related expenditures, which could permanently elevate the company's cost floor.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying CSX stock.
For fiscal year 2025, CSX Corporation (CSX) reported total revenue of $14.09B. This represents a 33.8% increase compared to $10.54B in 1996.
CSX Corporation (CSX) is profitable, generating $2.89B in net income for the fiscal year ending 2025 with a net profit margin of 20.5%.
CSX Corporation (CSX) reported an operating income of $4.52B, resulting in an operating profit margin of 32.1%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
CSX Corporation (CSX) generated $4.68B in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 33.2%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.