CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Stock Price Expected to Rise, BMO Capital Markets Analyst Says

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) had its target price raised by investment analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $40.00 to $45.00 in a research note issued on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a “market perform” rating on the transportation company’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ target price would indicate a potential downside of 0.90% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of CSX from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of CSX in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Citigroup lowered shares of CSX from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the company from $41.00 to $44.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Evercore lowered shares of CSX from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $41.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of CSX from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.26.

CSX Trading Down 1.7%

CSX stock opened at $45.41 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $84.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.86, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.69. CSX has a 1 year low of $27.51 and a 1 year high of $46.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $41.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.14.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.50 billion. CSX had a net margin of 21.55% and a return on equity of 24.47%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.34 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that CSX will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CSX news, CAO Diana B. Sorfleet sold 90,000 shares of CSX stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.56, for a total transaction of $3,740,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 165,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,882,876.28. The trade was a 35.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephen Fortune sold 31,456 shares of CSX stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.65, for a total transaction of $1,215,774.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 82,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,170,614.10. The trade was a 27.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 188,123 shares of company stock valued at $7,454,854 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. FNY Investment Advisers LLC boosted its stake in CSX by 437.3% during the third quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC now owns 720 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 586 shares during the period. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new position in CSX during the second quarter worth $28,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its stake in CSX by 121.5% during the third quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 1,329 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 729 shares during the period. CrossGen Wealth LLC purchased a new position in CSX during the fourth quarter worth $54,000. Finally, Aventura Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in CSX during the fourth quarter worth $63,000. 73.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CSX News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting CSX this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 EPS beat and upgraded outlook — CSX reported $0.43 GAAP EPS (above estimates), improved operating income and raised its 2026 revenue/growth guidance to mid‑single digits; management flagged higher volumes, lower operating costs and stronger free cash flow expectations, which supports upside for earnings and cash returns. CSX Q1 2026 Earnings Call Summary
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raise targets and ratings — Multiple firms (Jefferies, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Raymond James, BofA, BMO, TD Cowen, Benchmark and others) lifted price targets/ratings after the print, signaling growing sell‑side confidence and supporting further upside. Analyst Price Target Moves
• Positive Sentiment: Operational execution improving — Company commentary and reports highlight network expansion, record fuel efficiency and efficiency initiatives that drove margin expansion; that operational progress underpins a multi‑year earnings upside thesis. Q1 Deep Dive: Efficiency Initiatives
• Neutral Sentiment: One‑time items and revenue mix — Q1 included gains from real‑estate sales that helped EPS and revenue growth was modest (mixed with a slight top‑line miss), so some of the beat reflects non‑recurring items and cost reductions rather than pure demand strength. CSX Q1 Results Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Options and insider flows — Unusually large call buying (22,656 calls) signals speculative bullish positioning; insider activity is mixed (some sales but a CEO purchase), so flows are ambiguous for signaling broad conviction. (See trading summaries in media coverage.)
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation concerns and a downgrade — Morgan Stanley warned the turnaround appears largely priced in and cut its recommendation/target (citing stretched valuation), and some analysts caution about price risk after a strong YTD run; that has prompted profit‑taking and more cautious positioning. Morgan Stanley Downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed analyst views on sustainability of gains — Several commentaries note the revenue beat was small and question how much of margin improvement is repeatable if volumes soften; that introduces near‑term execution risk and volatility. Analysts Mixed on Q1

CSX Company Profile

CSX Corporation is a leading North American transportation company that provides rail-based freight services and supply-chain solutions. Its operating subsidiary, CSX Transportation, moves a wide range of goods for customers across multiple industries, using a combination of long-haul rail service, intermodal operations and terminal and yard services. The company focuses on delivering efficient, reliable freight transportation between major production centers, consumption markets and port gateways.

CSX’s freight portfolio includes intermodal containers and trailers, bulk commodities, industrial products and specialized unit trains.