CSX Corporation

CSX Industrials Railroads

CSX Corporation’s revenue for fiscal 2025 (year ended December 2025) was $14.1 billion, down 3.08% from fiscal 2024.

Revenue
+12.0%
EPS
+54.1%
Free cash flow
+65.8%
Total debt
−1.87%

Quarter to September 2026, against a year earlier

49.98 0.85 −1.67%
Market cap
$93.7B
P/E
26.3×
Fwd P/E
25.3×
Dividend yield
1.08%
F-score
5/9
Altman Z
2.32
Beneish M
−2.68
Dividend safety
72/100

CSX Corporation (CSX) valuation and DCF model

What the price implies · reverse DCF

At $49.98 the price implies free cash flow after share-based pay growing 12.1% a year for ten years.

Free cash flow after share-based pay grew 11.0% a year over the last ten years, −8.5% over the last five. The price asks for close to its ten-year rate. The industry’s median company is priced for 12.3%.

In December 2017 the price assumed 16.4% a year; CSX Corporation went on to grow free cash flow after share-based pay 2.0% a year to FY2025.

Price implies
12.1%
Last 5 years, reported
−8.5%
Last 10 years, reported
11.0%
Industry median implies
12.3%

The headline discounts the last twelve months’ free cash flow after share-based pay at 9.0% for ten years and grows it 2.5% a year after that, the same for every company, so the figure compares across the market (how a reverse DCF works).

The other way round · DCF
The price needs
12.1% a year for ten years
$49.98
today’s price
Its base case
11.0% a year for five years, then 6.6%
$37.48
25.0% below today’s price

Both are growth in free cash flow after share-based pay, discounted at 9.0%, with 2.5% a year after year ten.

Base case on its own ten-year record CSX Corporation’s own growth, carried forward

Its assumptions

Powerpack lets you start from a scenario and type over any of them.

The base case’s inputs, which Powerpack lets you change
1 · Cash flow to equity
the four quarters to September 2026, from the 10-Q and 10-K filings, before share-based pay

Yearly growth in cash flow. It usually slows as the company matures.

Today’s price implies free cash flow after share-based pay growing 12.1% a year for ten years.

2 · Rates

Cost of equity is the yearly return shareholders require, typically 8–11%. Terminal growth is growth forever after year 10, usually near long-run inflation, 2–3%.

3 · Per share

Diluted shares outstanding. Net debt, under Advanced inputs, is taken off before dividing.

Advanced inputs
negative is net cash
new shares the cash flow does not pay for

Against CSX Corporation’s own cost of capital: risk-free 4.3% + beta 1.11 × equity premium 4.5% = 9.3% cost of equity; weighted, 9.3%.

Use 9.3%
Equity value $69.77b ▼ below market cap $93.04b
Base case value per share $37.48 equity value ÷ 1.86b shares
Current price $49.98 market price per share
Below today’s price 25.0% downside at the base case’s assumptions

How we got there$35.02b 10 years of cash to equity+$51.95b terminal value−$17.20b net debt=$69.77b equity value÷1.86b shares=$37.48 per share

Valuation against its own history

Today’s multiple against its 5- and 10-year averages and the industry median (Railroads).

Multiple Current 5Y avg 10Y avg vs 10Y avg Industry median vs industry 10Y range
P/E 26.27× 20.51× 19.29× 36% above 26.90× 2% below
P/FCF 27.81× 25.35× 24.15× 15% above 26.38× 5% above
P/B 6.52× 5.54× 5.18× 26% above 3.70× 76% above
EV/EBITDA 15.67× 12.75× 12.69× 23% above 13.48× 16% above
EV/Sales 7.42× 6.09× 6.32× 18% above 4.34× 71% above
5.35×6.19×7.02×7.86×10Y avg 6.32×2017201820192020202120222023202420252026

CSX trades at 7.42× EV/Sales, against a 10-year average of 6.32× (range 5.46×–7.88×). That is dearer than 78% of the last 9 year-end readings; re-rating to the average implies $41.14 per share.

Every growth rate on this page is the business’s — its cash flow, FFO or dividend — never its share price’s. A discounted-cash-flow model is only as good as its assumptions. Figures from the 10-K and 10-Q filings. Not investment advice.