CSX

CSX just printed its Q3 2026 scorecard and the headline reads cleaner than today's trading suggests. The stock is down about 2.5% in Friday's session, easing off a recent run, even as the railroad posted roughly US$4.0b in revenue and about US$0.57 in basic earnings per share. The real story sits in profitability. Management delivered an operating margin above 39% and highlighted sharply higher free cash flow for the year, which puts the immediate price slip at odds with the improvement in the underlying freight engine. Love CSX's rich margins and rising free cash flow but wary of short term price swings around earnings season? Compare it against our list of solid balance sheet and fundamentals stocks (26 results). - Revenue (Q3 2026 vs Q3 2025): US$4,017m vs. US$3,587m (up about 12%) - Net Income (Excl. Extra Items, Q3 2026 vs Q3 2025): US$1,052m vs. US$694m (up about 52%) - Basic EPS (Earnings Per Share, Q3 2026 vs Q3 2025): US$0.57 vs. US$0.37 (up about 53%) - Operating Margin (Q3 2026 vs Q3 2025): 39.1% vs. roughly 34.9% (up about 4.2 percentage points) Management is already staffing up for 2027 volume growth. Ask Charlie what CSX's real 2027 growth bet is. The bullish story argues that CSX's earnings power depends on turning operational tweaks into structurally leaner costs and better asset use. "Record fuel efficiency metrics, tighter control of vehicle fleets and a broad set of over 100 cost initiatives across PS&O, labor and energy use are aimed at structurally lower operating expense and support the company's target for operating margin expansion and EPS growth." Q3 results give this claim real footing. Nonfuel expense declined while handling 5% higher volume, PS&O dropped about 10%, and operating margin reached 39.1%, up roughly 4.2 percentage points year on year. Management now guides to more than 350 basis points of full year margin expansion, so the cost program is not just theory; it is flowing through the income statement. The price and this Narrative do not agree. → Uncover what this Narrative says CSX is actually worth. The skeptical view argues CSX is leaning too hard on cost cuts, heavy capex and a slow build in new freight to justify current enthusiasm. "Heavy reliance on cost programs and more than 100 separate efficiency initiatives means any slowdown in execution or reversal of recent PS&O and labor savings could cap future margin gains and limit earnings progression once early wins are exhausted." Q3 efficiency actually moved the other way. Nonfuel costs fell while handling 5% more volume and PS&O declined about 10%. Guidance still calls for operating margin expansion above 350 bps in 2026, so the feared stall in savings is not visible yet, even with capex held below US$2.4b. CSX just showed how earnings strength and recent share moves can briefly separate. The real opportunity sits in finding stocks that could be undervalued before the market reassesses them. - Company 1 - 35% below our estimate - use higher horsepower generation and long term data center contracts to reshape power systems exposure. - Company 2 - 31% below our estimate - anchor critical digital infrastructure where data traffic is processed, interconnected, secured and managed across workloads. - Company 3 - 50% below our estimate - shift toward larger recurring fee revenue as acquisitions broaden customer reach and deepen partnership driven product bundles. That is three of the list. See every one of the 29 undervalued companies on it → This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Companies discussed in this article include CSX. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email [email protected]

- Union Pacific's dividend consumes only 40% of adjusted EPS and extends a 20-year annual raise streak, keeping the payout well-protected for income investors. - While Union Pacific slashed buybacks to $26 million to build merger cash for Norfolk Southern, rival CSX spent $1 billion repurchasing 23 million shares. - Building a portfolio and living off one are two completely different skills, and almost nobody teaches the second. This problem is what The Definitive Guide to Retirement Income helps, and it is free today. Read more here. (Sponsor) Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) reported third-quarter results this morning. The figures beat expectations on both earnings and revenue. Adjusted EPS was $3.53, ahead of the $3.47 consensus, and revenue rose 15.3% to $7.20 billion. Shares were up 2.86% to $296.10 by midday. For income investors, the real story is behind those numbers, as the payout is well covered and capital returns now run almost entirely through the dividend. Union Pacific declared $1.42 per share for the quarter, up from $1.38. This amounts to about 40% of adjusted quarterly EPS. In 2025, dividends of $5.44 against reported EPS of $11.98 put the payout ratio near 45%. The forward annualized dividend of $5.68 gives a yield of about 1.9%. Cash flow supports those ratios. Cash from operations rose 18% to $8.3 billion, and free cash flow came to $2.4 billion. Management pointed to the earnings strength behind the payout: "Union Pacific reported record financial results as net income totaled $2.1 billion, and our adjusted earnings per share grew 15% to $3.53." A 3% increase marks the company's 20th consecutive year of annual raises. The payment history confirms the steady pattern. The quarterly dividend held at $1.30 into early 2024, then rose to $1.34, then $1.38, and now stands at $1.42. That is about 9% above the $1.30 level. Guidance also commits to "consistent annual dividend increases." ------ Many successful investors eventually reach the same moment. The saving is done, the portfolio is built, and the question quietly changes from how much can I grow this to how much can I take out? Get that second question wrong and decades of good investing can come apart in a handful of years. That is exactly what The Definitive Guide to Retirement Income helps answer. It covers what your retirement could actually cost, which income sources are worth using, and the withdrawal math that decides whether the money lasts. It is free today from Fisher Investments. Read More Here › ------ Share repurchases fell to $26 million over the first nine months, compared with $2,679 million a year earlier. The reason is the pending Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) acquisition: "We will continue growing our cash reserves in anticipation of closing the Norfolk Southern merger in the second half of 2027." Norfolk Southern also bought back no shares through September. CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) did the opposite, spending $1,049 million to repurchase 23 million shares. Union Pacific held $3.1 billion in cash and short-term investments. It ended the quarter with adjusted debt to EBITDA of 2.4 times. The details are simple. Volume grew 6% while headcount fell 1%, so each extra carload added more profit than cost. Intermodal revenue jumped 27%. Pricing increases also continued to outpace inflation. Management expects that to improve: "Looking forward, you would expect a better position, a better environment for stronger pricing." The company itself flags a credit rating downgrade risk from increased indebtedness linked to the acquisition. If borrowing costs rise, more cash goes to interest, and less is left for dividend growth. Fuel is a pressure point as well, with fourth-quarter prices expected to average about $4.85 per gallon. The dividend looks secure. A payout near 40% of earnings and a 20-year record of raises back that up. Starting income is modest at a 1.9% yield, though, and buybacks are on hold until the merger closes. For now, income growth will come from steady raises like this year's 3%. Watch the November 18 merger comment date and fourth-quarter fuel costs. (Sponsor) Most people spend their entire working lives focusing on one thing: growing a pile of money. Then they retire and discover the skill they actually need is close to the opposite. Turning that pile into steady income, year after year, through good markets and bad, without ever running out. It may be the least discussed and most consequential transition in personal finance, and plenty of otherwise careful investors walk into it with no real plan. That is exactly what The Definitive Guide to Retirement Income helps answer. It is a free guide from Fisher Investments covering what your retirement will really cost, where the cash flow should come from, and how much you can safely withdraw each year. Learn more here. Learn More Here › Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

For questions about this article or underlying research, email [email protected]. Shares of CSX (CSX) rose 6.8% on October 22, 2026, the day after the company released its fiscal Q3 2026 report, while the S&P 500 fell 1.2%. The railroad posted $4.02 billion in revenue, coming in barely above the $4.0 billion consensus estimate. That figure marked a 12% increase from a year earlier, and management raised its full-year sales outlook. Fuel surcharges drove a portion of this increase. So how much of that growth came from hauling more freight? Half Of CSX's Growth Came From Freight And Prices Management said fuel accounted for about half of the revenue growth in fiscal Q3 2026, as average diesel prices ran nearly 50% higher than a year earlier. The other half came from the railroad's own operations: CSX moved 5% more freight, and the CFO cited pricing gains in its merchandise, intermodal and coal markets. The intermodal business illustrates both factors simultaneously. Volume in the segment climbed 7% to an all-time record, yet management said essentially all of the rise in revenue per unit came from fuel surcharges. Management still raised its outlook and now expects full-year revenue growth in the high single digits, up from its previous forecast of the mid to high single digit range. This projection covers total revenue, including fuel. In fiscal Q3 2026, about half of that growth came from diesel prices, which CSX does not set. CSX's Operating Margin Has Widened Each Quarter In 2026 The margin offers a firmer picture. CSX posted an operating margin of 36.0% in fiscal Q1 2026 and 38.3% in fiscal Q2. The metric reached 39.1% in fiscal Q3, compared with 34.9% a year earlier excluding a $164 million goodwill charge. Management said the railroad handled the extra volume while reducing nonfuel costs by 3%. Not every expense declined: higher incentive pay and inflation added over $90 million to labor costs, which were mostly offset by better workforce productivity and the absence of last year's severance costs. CSX controls these operational elements, which is why the margin forms the firmer half of the case for the stock. What CSX Management Expects For Fiscal Q4 2026 Management said it is confident of widening the full-year operating margin by more than 350 basis points in 2026. The company also anticipates the usual fourth-quarter step up in expenses as winter arrives, and said that a service agreement that added new business in the fall of 2025 no longer contributes to year-over-year growth. During the October 21 call, management attributed only about half of the growth to fuel. When asked how much extra revenue the surcharges newly added on tariff traffic generated during fiscal Q3 2026, management said it would not provide a precise number. The stock's rise outpaced other railroads on October 22, with Union Pacific up 3.6% and Norfolk Southern up 3.1%. Following the jump, CSX traded at 26.7 times its trailing earnings at that day's close, against 23.0 for the S&P 500. CSX's margin widened as the company cut nonfuel costs, but about half of its revenue growth came from diesel. For the 6.8% jump to last, more of that growth has to come from freight rather than fuel. CSX is expected to report its fiscal Q4 2026 results in January 2027, and its volume growth from a year earlier is the figure to watch. Your Advisor Retired? Get A Second Opinion Before You Settle One report just changed how CSX looks to the people who own it. When the advisor who built your plan moves on, it is a natural moment to ask whether the plan still fits the life you have now. Our partner advisory firm offers a free review of your holdings, fees and income plan. Get A Free Second Opinion Spot an error or want more like this? Tell us in 10 seconds.

CSX Corporation (CSX) reported third-quarter 2026 earnings of 57 cents per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 52 cents by 9.6%. Earnings increased 29.5% year over year from the prior-year adjusted figure of 44 cents per share, which excluded a goodwill impairment charge. Total revenues increased 12% year over year to $4.02 billion, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.95 billion by 1.7%. Higher fuel surcharge revenues, volume growth and improved pricing across merchandise, intermodal and coal supported the top line. Total volumes increased 5% year over year. CSX Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | CSX Corporation Quote Merchandise revenues increased 11% year over year to $2.45 billion. Merchandise volumes rose 3% year over year, while revenues per unit improved 8% to $3,613. Higher fuel surcharges and favorable contract renewals contributed to revenue growth. Chemicals revenues increased 13% year over year to $790 million, supported by higher shipments of petcoke, waste, plastics and crude oil. Agricultural and food products revenues also rose 13% year over year to $430 million, benefiting from increased grain and feed ingredient shipments. Metals and equipment revenues surged 19% year over year to $267 million, driven by higher steel, equipment and aluminum shipments. Forest products revenues advanced 12% year over year to $277 million, while automotive revenues improved 6% despite lower shipments. Fertilizer revenues declined 6% year over year to $118 million due to weaker demand. Intermodal revenues increased 20% year over year to $634 million. Segment volumes advanced 7% to 820,000 units, while revenues per unit grew 13% year over year to $773. Domestic intermodal shipments benefited from customer wins, new service offerings and tightening trucking capacity. Higher fuel prices also supported revenues per unit, partially offsetting a slight decline in international shipments. Coal revenues increased 10% year over year to $537 million. Volumes improved 2% year over year to 188,000 units, while revenues per unit rose 7% to $2,856. Higher export shipments of metallurgical and thermal coal, supported by production from reopened mines, helped offset softer domestic utility demand. Trucking revenues increased 10% year over year to $227 million, while other revenues grew 7% to $166 million. Total operating expenses declined 2% year over year to $2.45 billion. The reduction reflected the absence of a $164 million goodwill impairment charge recorded in the prior-year quarter, along with operating cost savings. Fuel expenses surged 60.5% year over year to $451 million as locomotive fuel prices increased 67% to $4.24 per gallon. Lower fuel consumption and improved efficiency partially offset the impact of higher prices. Labor and fringe expenses increased 2% year over year to $834 million, driven by higher incentive compensation and wage inflation. Purchased services and other expenses declined 10% to $657 million, benefiting from efficiency initiatives and lower network disruption-related costs. Depreciation and amortization expenses fell 3% year over year to $413 million, while equipment and other rents increased 7% to $92 million. Operating income increased 44.4% year over year to $1.57 billion. Compared with the prior-year adjusted operating income of $1.25 billion, the increase was 25.5%. Operating margin expanded to 39.1% from the prior-year adjusted margin of 34.9%, representing an improvement of 420 basis points. Net earnings increased 51.6% to $1.05 billion from reported net earnings of $694 million a year earlier. Excluding the prior-year impairment, net earnings improved 28.6% from $818 million. The Federal Railroad Administration personal injury frequency index improved 17% to 0.97, while the train accident rate declined 5% to 2.77. Fuel efficiency improved 2% to 0.92 gallons per 1,000 gross ton-miles. However, average train velocity declined 2% to 18.6 miles per hour, while dwell time increased 12% to 10.6 hours. Carload trip plan performance decreased to 73% from 83%, reflecting continued service challenges. Net cash provided by operating activities totaled $4.22 billion during the first nine months of 2026, compared with $3.23 billion in the year-ago period. Free cash flow before dividends increased to $2.65 billion from $1.07 billion. CSX exited September with cash and cash equivalents of $1.22 billion, compared with $670 million at year-end 2025. Long-term debt stood at $17.1 billion, compared with $18.17 billion at year-end. The company repurchased $1.06 billion of shares and paid $779 million in dividends during the first nine months. For full-year 2026, CSX expects high-single-digit revenue growth. Operating margin expansion is anticipated to exceed 350 basis points. Management expects free cash flow growth of more than 80%, while total capital expenditures are projected to remain below $2.4 billion. CSX has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Delta Air Lines DAL reported third-quarter 2026 earnings (excluding 57 cents from non-recurring items) of $1.72 per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.80 by 4.44%. Earnings increased year over year despite sharply higher fuel costs and rising non-fuel expenses. Adjusted revenues climbed 16% year over year to $17.59 billion but missed the consensus estimate of $17.74 billion by 0.9%. Broad demand strength and healthy yields lifted adjusted total revenue per available seat mile, or TRASM, by 15%, while premium and diversified revenue streams continued to expand. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. JBHT reported third-quarter 2026 earnings of $1.82 per share, up 3.4% from $1.76 a year ago. The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.81 by 0.6%. Operating revenues climbed 20.4% year over year to $3.68 billion and surpassed the consensus mark of $3.56 billion by 3.2%. Stronger pricing, an 8% increase in Intermodal loads and higher brokerage volumes supported growth. However, elevated driver-related expenses, fuel costs and insurance claims pressured profitability. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. UAL reported third-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $2.54 per share, down 8.6% year over year and below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.60 by 2.3%. Higher fuel expenses weighed on profitability despite strong revenue growth. Operating revenues rose 17.4% to $17.88 billion but missed the consensus mark of $17.91 billion by 0.2%. A 15.9% increase in total revenue per available seat mile or TRASM, supported the top line, driven by strength across premium, loyalty and contracted business revenues. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report CSX Corporation (CSX) : Free Stock Analysis Report Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) : Free Stock Analysis Report United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) : Free Stock Analysis Report J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (JBHT) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Our analysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here. - Management attributed the 420 basis point margin expansion to substantial productivity gains across labor, fuel, and asset utilization, which more than offset inflationary pressures. - The 5% volume growth was primarily driven by the intermodal segment, benefiting from tight trucking capacity and high diesel prices that incentivized highway-to-rail conversion. - Record fuel efficiency was achieved through the deployment of fuel-saving technologies and a rigorous focus on reducing engine idling across the fleet. - Operational improvements in velocity and dwell were credited to closer coordination between commercial and transportation teams, providing better visibility into demand and resource positioning. - The company is transitioning to a direct-reporting structure for operations leaders following the retirement of the COO, with the CEO taking a more active role in operational oversight. - Strategic investments in capacity, such as the 50% infrastructure expansion in Atlanta, are being prioritized to support high-growth corridors and maintain service reliability. - Revenue growth guidance for 2026 was raised to high single digits, reflecting strong performance in the first nine months and sustained demand in merchandise and intermodal markets. - Management is incorporating over 100 sustainable efficiency initiatives into the 2027 budget, though they expect productivity gains to be more moderate than the significant levels seen in 2026. - The company plans to increase its conductor trainee pipeline and add modest headcount to the train and engine workforce to ensure sufficient resources for expected volume growth in 2027. - Fourth-quarter margin improvement is expected to exceed 350 basis points year-over-year, despite typical seasonal headwinds from winter weather and holiday-related labor costs. - Intermodal yields are expected to benefit from the upcoming bid season as the company leverages full double-stack capabilities through the I-95 corridor and the Howard Street Tunnel. - Fertilizer volumes declined 13% due to persistent supply issues in phosphate and low crop prices impacting farmer affordability. - Coal export volumes remained resilient despite a temporary mine closure following a late-summer fire, supported by higher global benchmarks flowing into U.S. export pricing. - The company noted that while international intermodal remains stable, domestic intermodal is the primary engine of growth due to its high correlation with the tightening truck market. - Management flagged fuel price volatility as a potential source of near-term 'noise' in financial results, though they remain confident in their long-term margin expansion targets. One stock. Nvidia-level potential. 30M+ investors trust Moby to find it first. Get the pick. Tap here. - Management expressed confidence in sustaining volume growth through targeted commercial initiatives and highway conversions. - They confirmed that while they generally plan for modest growth, current momentum allows for continued productivity gains even as they add necessary resources like locomotives and crews. - The commercial team is taking a 'surgical' approach to contract renewals, ensuring pricing reflects the improved quality of service and offsets inflationary pressures. - Same-store sales pricing is expected to be stronger than the previous year, with discretionary pricing in merchandise accelerating through the second half of 2026. - Management noted a lag effect in pricing as the truck market tightened after much of the 2026 bid season had concluded, creating a favorable setup for 2027 renewals. - The focus for the upcoming bid season is on converting more truckload files to rail by providing shippers with better visibility into transit reliability. - CSX is currently testing 'start-to-stop' fuel technology and is working through the formal test process with the FRA for broader implementation. - Once approved, this capability is expected to be rolled out across the entire fleet to further enhance fuel productivity.

Image source: The Motley Fool. Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026 - President and Chief Executive Officer - Stephen F. Angel - Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer - Kevin S. Boone - Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer - Maryclare Kenney - Head of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications - Matthew James Korn Operator: And gentlemen, thank you for standing by. My name is Abby, and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the CSX Corporation's Third Quarter 26 Earnings Conference Call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speakers' remarks, there will be a question and answer session. If you would like to ask a question during that time, simply press star followed by the number 1 on your telephone keypad. If you would like to withdraw your question, press star 1 again. Thank you. And I would now like to turn the conference over to Matthew James Korn, Head of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications. Mister Korn? You may begin. Matthew James Korn: Thank you, Abby. Good afternoon, everyone. We are very pleased to have a July third quarter conference call. Joining me from the CSX leadership team are Steve Angel, president and chief executive officer Kevin S. Boone, EVP and chief financial officer Maryclare Kenney, Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer. In the presentation that accompanies this call, which is available on our website, you will find slides with our forward looking and our non GAAP disclosures. We encourage you to review them. With that, I am very happy to turn the call over to Mr. Steve Angel. Stephen F. Angel: Thank you, Matthew. Good afternoon. I am pleased to report that CSX has delivered another quarter of strong financial performance. Earnings of $0.57 per share increased 30% compared to last year's adjusted results. Our volume grew 5% as more customers turned to our railroad to safely and reliably move their goods. And our operating margin improved to 39.1%. Which was 420 basis points higher than last year's adjusted result. The progress we continue to make on productivity has helped drive substantial growth and profitability, earnings, and free cash flow. Our goal is to be the best performing railroad in North America. And the entire CSX team is responding to that challenge. We are proud of how far we have come this year, and excited about our position as we look ahead to 2027. Before we turn to the details, I want to recognize Mike Corey who recently announced his retirement after a 45-year career. Mike is a true railroader who has made significant contributions to CSX, our customers, and our employees. He also developed a deep bench of operations leaders and I am confident in Doug Ryhorchuk, Casey Albright, and the entire operations team as we continue executing on our priorities of safety, reliable service, and long term value. We thank Mike for his leadership and wish him all the best. Turning to slide 4. The work underway to strengthen our safety culture contributed to another quarter of year over year improvement. Our FRA injury rate decreased by 17%, and our accident rate fell by 4%. While we are encouraged by that progress, our work is never finished. We will continue our efforts to reduce risk, increase awareness, and improve communication to support our employees as they do their jobs. We do not and will not compromise on safety. We also continued improving productivity. Third quarter fuel efficiency was not only the best ever achieved by CSE but also the best ever reported by any US railroad. And workforce efficiency as measured by gross ton miles per employee improved substantially year over year. This next slide shows our key service metrics. We are encouraged by the sequential improvement in velocity dwell, and customer switch data. Which measure first mile and last mile performance. Trip plan compliance for our carload business also improved modestly quarter over quarter. Though intermodal trip plan compliance declined. We are handling more volume safely and efficiently but we know our network can perform better. Operations is connecting more closely with our commercial team giving us better visibility into demand, and helping us get the right number of crews and locomotives to the right locations. Active crew management is improving engineer and conductor availability. Better planning and coordination between engineering and transportation is leading to less network disruption as we execute our capital projects. In technology such as auto-- Autonomous track inspection cars, is helping us plan better and respond effectively to day to day events on the railroad. Supporting faster trains and fewer delays. Service started strong in October. With velocity averaging more than 19 mph this month and dwell approaching 10 hours. Our team also did an excellent job preparing for Hurricane Isaias which we managed through with minimal impact. We intend to build on this momentum, ensure that our service supports our growing business. Kevin, please review our financial performance for the quarter. Kevin S. Boone: All right. Thank you, Steve, and good afternoon, everyone. In the third quarter, the CSX team improved safety, met increased demand for our customers, delivered substantial cost efficiency, and made sequential progress on our service metrics. Revenue increased 12% driven by higher fuel surcharge. 5% volume growth, and pricing gains across the merchandise, intermodal, and coal markets. As a reminder, our prior year results included a $164 million goodwill impairment. Adjusting for that charge, higher revenue and lower nonfuel costs drove a 25% increase in operating income, and 420 basis points of margin expansion despite 70 basis points of fuel price headwinds. This translates to a 30% increase in earnings per share Let's now turn to the next slide for a closer look at expenses. The team handled 5% more volume in the third quarter, while reducing nonfuel costs by 3%. Labor expense increased by $19 million as improved workforce productivity and lapping of severance costs mostly offset over $90 million of higher costs from incentive compensation and inflation. Labor expense will have a typical sequential increase in the fourth quarter but reported headcount will be lower due to temporary seasonal reductions. First quarter 27 headcount will be similar to current levels as these employees return to work and we build our conductor trainee pipeline to start the year. PS&O expenses were 10% lower reflecting our continued focus to drive efficiencies across this diverse pool of the costs. Savings were driven by improved utilization of both locomotives and vehicles. Reduced reliance on external labor and multiple G&A functions, absorption of intermodal volume growth, and maintenance efficiencies across rolling stock and fixed assets. Steve highlighted our record fuel efficiency this quarter. I will reiterate the team's great work to reduce engine idling, and utilize fuel savings technology. Both of which deliver greater value in the higher current price environment. Looking to the fourth quarter, on a sequential basis, we expect the normal seasonal increase in PS&O combined with typical weather related reduction in fuel efficiency. Overall, a consistent-- and consistent with past years, we would expect some step up sequentially in the fourth quarter expense line as we enter the winter months. And while fuel volatility can create some near term noise, we expect to deliver year over year margin improvement above 300-- 350 points in the fourth quarter. We are building a culture of continuous improvement that positions us to deliver further safety, service, and efficiency gains in 2027 and beyond. This includes a robust pipeline of sustainable efficiency initiatives that we are now incorporating into our 2027 budgets with clear accountability for results. With that, let me turn it over to Maryclare Kenney to review our revenue performance. Maryclare Kenney: Thank you, Kevin, and good afternoon, everyone. Our commercial group continues to deliver in a favorable environment of solid customer demand and tight trucking capacity. The consistent network performance delivered by our operations team together with the new services, added capacity, and growth initiatives we brought online have positioned us well to take advantage of the opportunities in this market. Our performance this quarter was strong, and I want to thank everyone at CSX for helping us maintain the momentum. Turning to slide 10. Let's go through the highlights of our third quarter volume and revenue results. Total CSX volume was up 5% in the third quarter. Total revenue was up 12% and our revenue per unit was up 7%. Fuel contributed about half of our revenue growth, as average diesel prices increased nearly 50% year-over-year. Our intermodal business continues to contribute the largest share of our volume growth. So mix remains a headwind to overall RPU. Even with that mix impact, revenue per unit, excluding fuel, increased 1% this quarter. We remain encouraged by the results of contract renewals, as we progress throughout the year. In merchandise, revenue increased by 11%, with a 3% increase in volume. Merchandise RPU, excluding fuel, was up over 2% despite unfavorable mix in markets. With the largest impacts within chemicals and fertilizers. Including fuel, RPU was up 8% year-over-year. Volume performance was more varied across our merchandise markets compared to the second quarter. Metals was the top performer, gaining 12% as fuel demand, particularly plate, has been very good across infrastructure and energy markets. We are also benefiting from increasing output from the new steel mills located on our network that are ramping up at a favorable time. Chemicals was also a highlight. With volume up 7% driven by conversion and good opportunities in waste and petroleum products. In contrast, fertilizers has been the softest merchandise area for us. With volume down 13% for the quarter. The headwinds in this market have persisted for some time, with supply issues limiting phosphate shipments and low crop prices weighing on fertilizer affordability and demand. Reduced trucking availability high truck rates, and elevated diesel cost continue to benefit our intermodal segment. Conversions from the highway remain strong, and the new service offerings through Birmingham, Myrtlewood, Baltimore, and other areas are performing well and attracting new business. In areas such as Atlanta, where substantial profitable volume growth has led to temporary service tightness, we are working closely with our operations team as CSX-- CSX invests in additional capacity. Total intermodal volume was up 7% year-over-year, and reached a new all time record. With revenue up 20% and RPU up 13%. Essentially, all of the RPU increase was driven by fuel surcharge. As we have seen through 2026, the domestic business drove this quarter while international remained roughly stable year over year. I am encouraged by the outlook into the fourth quarter, although please keep in mind that we have now lapped the gains from the service agreement with BN that added new business last fall. Lastly, coal revenue increased by 10%, driven by a 2% increase in volume and a 7% increase in RPU. Export tons grew by solid 7%, as mine output increased while domestic tons declined modestly during a relatively mild summer where natural gas prices remained around $3. On price, global coal benchmarks have moved higher this quarter as supply constraints in China lifted pricing for Australian exports. This has gradually flowed to US export prices which provided a moderate benefit to our yields in the third quarter. We expect another small sequential RPU increase in the fourth quarter from the lagged effects of these higher benchmarks. As we move into the fourth quarter, we are pleased with what we have accomplished while working hard to finish the year strong. We expect normal seasonality in our merchandise markets with some support in ag and food, from a good Midwestern harvest. We also have several capacity expansions scheduled to ramp up into year end, particularly in chemicals and minerals. Demand indicators remain good for domestic intermodal, and we are pleased to enter this bid season with the benefit of full double stack operations on our I 95 corridor through Baltimore. Finally, coal demand appears fairly stable in the near term. Utility burn will be driven by weather conditions, while on the export side, we have been successful in maintaining volume even as a customer mind works through a temporary closure following a fire in late summer. To sum up, as we move into year end and anticipate the start of 2027, our focus will remain on consistent execution winning business from the highway, and ensuring that our pricing reflects the quality of the service we provide. Thank you, I will now turn it back to Steve to close. Stephen F. Angel: Thank you, Maryclare Kenney. Now we will review our updated guidance for 2026 on Slide 12. We now expect revenue growth in the high single digits compared to the mid to high single digit range we provided previously. The rest of our guidance is unchanged. I am confident that we will achieve full year operating margin expansion of more than 350 basis points. Our outlook for capital expenditures remains below $2.4 billion and we expect free cash flow growth of more than 80%. This outlook reflects our strong performance through the first 9 months of the year as well as our expectations for the fourth quarter. As we move into 2027, we will be focused on ensuring we have sufficient resources across the network to support a growing business. Which will include adding to our train and engine employee pipeline. We remain committed to sizing our workforce to the needs of a safe, reliable, and efficient railroad. In summary, we feel very good about our railroad's position. As we approach year end and are encouraged by the opportunities ahead. I came to CSX just over a year ago, and I continue to be impressed by the dedication our employees bring to this company. And the pride they take in being part of CSX. Together, we have made great progress towards our goal of being best in class as we build a high performance culture that embraces continuous improvement. As we carry this momentum into 2027, we will also mark CSX's 200th anniversary tracing back to the founding of the B and O Railroad. It is a significant milestone and an opportunity to recognize our history while showing how CSX continues moving the economy forward. So, Matthew, with that, I will now open it up to questions. Matthew James Korn: Thank you, Steve. We will now proceed with the question and answer session. Now to ensure that we maximize everyone's opportunity to participate, we do ask that you please limit yourselves to 1 and only 1 question. Abby, we are ready to begin. Operator: Thank you. And we will now begin the question and answer session. If you have dialed in and would like to ask a question, please press 1 on your telephone keypad to raise your hand and join the queue. If you would like to withdraw your question, simply press 1 again. If you are called upon to ask your question and are listening via speaker phone on your device, please pick up your handset and ensure that your phone is not on mute when asking your question. And as a reminder, to be able to take as many questions as possible, we ask that you please limit your to 1 question. Again, to join the queue, it is star 1. And our first question comes from the line of Chris Wetherbee with Wells Fargo. Your line is open. Chris Wetherbee: Yes. Hey, thanks and good afternoon. Steve and team, obviously, the productivity that you have been able to drive so far in 2026 has been very solid. We have seen meaningful margin expansion. You noted, Steve, as we are starting to think about 2027, I know the productivity and the planning is going on for that year. Can you give us a sense of sort of where you think you are in the process? I think the OR improvements are better than we expected this year. But as you look at the opportunity ahead of you, volume is growing. You noted maybe rebuilding the pipeline of employees. Can you give us a sense of what the potential product productivity opportunity is from here? Stephen F. Angel: Well, we are still working on it as you as you mentioned, but we already have, a little over 100 initiatives that are contributing to our productivity target next year. You know, this year was a big year for productivity. I do not think 2027 will be as big, but it will certainly be a significant number next year. But it is something we continue to work on. Team's very excited about Kevin's playing a heavy role in that. And, we feel very encouraged about productivity going into 2027. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Brian Ossenbeck with JPMorgan. Your line is open. Brian Ossenbeck: Yeah. Thanks for taking the question. Maybe, Steve, we can just get your thoughts on the operating department and the structure going forward. Obviously, Mike's a big part of building out a bench there. Are you thinking if this is, a dual COO type of role? Are you gonna take on some additional operating responsibilities? Are you doing an external or any type of search? Maybe just give us some context in terms of how you got to this decision and how you are gonna evaluate this going forward. Thanks. Stephen F. Angel: This is the call you are going to want. It was Casey and Doug to continue doing what they have been doing. And, Casey's been in charge of network ops and service design and Doug has been in charge of engineering and mechanical and transportation. So they will continue doing what they have been doing. They are just gonna report directly into me I look forward to that. I do not know how much most of you know about my background, but, I am. Most people think of me as an operating CEO and that is what I like to do. If you go back in the. My early days, I actually ran manufacturing operations for GE. And I installed 1 of the first lean systems in The United States back in the nineties. So operations always have been in my blood and I look. You know, I am not a lifelong railroader like a lot of people, but operations is in my blood, and I look forward to getting more involved with Doug and Casey You know, Casey, again, 30 year veteran of CSX, started off in dispatch. Doug had 4 decades at CN doing just about every job inside of operations and he is been with us the last couple years, and then they both do a great job. I look forward to working very closely with them. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Stephanie Benjamin Moore with Jefferies. Your line is open. Stephanie Benjamin Moore: Hi. Good afternoon. Thanks for the question. Really appreciate it. I would say. I wanted to take a step back. I think there is a lot of really strong top line momentum that we are seeing here. Clearly, we can all see this on the volume front. I think we can all see just the fuel contribution. But as you think about just the price opportunity, even ex fuel, maybe help us with how we are thinking about that opportunity in 2027 Clearly, inflationary pressure even beyond just the transportation environment are more top and center of these at this point in time. So I would love to get your thoughts on just pricing as we look into 2027. Thanks. Maryclare Kenney: Yeah. Thanks for the question. I would tell you pricing is really a key focus area for the team. We have talked about that a lot this year. Steve mentioned on previous calls, we are really taking a surgical approach to pricing. You mentioned inflationary pressures. We recognize those. We are having conversations around that with customers as we go through the renewal process. I would say, as a reminder, we cannot touch every contract every year. But we are focused across markets. We still expect for this year our same store sales pricing to be stronger than it was last year. And I would tell you, we have seen discretionary pricing on the merchandise accelerate as we have moved throughout the course of this year. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Scott Group with Wolfe Research. Your line is open. Scott Group: Hey. Thanks. So, Steve, I think in the past, you said that you do not plan for growth. But we are. This is gonna be our third year in a row of volume growth, which I actually do not think has ever happened at CSX before. At least back to, like, the nineties. So I guess what is the sustainability of this in your mind? And what does that mean for the network? Are we handling this well? Do we need more people? Do we need more locomotives? And is this. Should we get continued volume growth? Is this just a sort of a further opportunity for productivity if we get some continue growth. Stephen F. Angel: Well, I am encouraged by all of our growth initiatives that Maryclare and the team are driving and it looks to me like we have some momentum on the growth side. I think you are correct. You know, what I have said before is when I look at the types of earnings per share growth I wanna drive by, I generally assume modest volume growth. And that generally is the case. But, again, as I look at what is going on here, with all the initiatives, it looks pretty positive going into next year. With respect to our ability to handle the volume, we feel very confident we can handle the volume. We are adding some headcount. I think Kevin said that in his remarks. On the T&E side. To make sure that we, we are properly manned to from an operating standpoint, a transportation standpoint, to serve the business that we have in the business and the additional volumes we expect to come. So again, encouraged by the initiatives that are underway, and I think we are, going into the year from a pretty good position on the top line and we will be ready to serve that business. Operator: And our next question comes from Tom Wadewitz with UBS. Your line is open. Thomas Wadewitz: Yeah. Good afternoon. wanted to get a sense if you could provide some help on the key pieces of intermodal volume growth. And then give us a sense domestic to be clear, domestic intermodal volume growth. And then just how we think about how much runway is left whether it is available boxes in UMAX or whether it is just kind of how far the service has progressed on, let's say, Southeast Express with CP. But I just, I guess, I think of the, You Know, UMAX Kind Of New Services Related To Howard Street and things you could do as that was debottlenecked, and then maybe CP Interline is potentially specific drivers. But if you could run through what are the kind of biggest drivers on domestic intermodal and is there still a lot more to go, in 2027? Thank you. Maryclare Kenney: Yes. Sure. Thanks. So domestic has really driven our growth this year. International has been relatively flat, particular, in the recent quarter. What I would say on the domestic side is we have got a number of initiatives out there. The team. We have talked about on previous calls, the work the team has done in relation to SMX and Howard Street Tunnel. And so in both places, we continue to see volume growth, and we have been very pleased with that over the course of this year. FMX has been in play longer than Howard Street. We finished the work around the tunnel in full double stack clearances after we were through the majority of bid season this past year, so we have seen momentum build on Howard Street. But we are excited about getting into next year's bid season, which is really starting right now. And having that solution and kind of more of the RFPs and the routing guides as we go forward. You know, beyond the new solutions, we are working closely hand in hand with our channel partners. And then through our national accounts team directly with shippers. To look at opportunities for truck conversion. Truck capacity has obviously tightened pretty significantly over the course of the last couple of quarters. And we have customers that are existing customers today, are continuing to look to rail to move more of their business to an intermodal solution because of what they are seeing in the truck market. So we are very optimistic about the opportunities that are. That continue to be in front of us as we close out this year and go into next year on the domestic intermodal side. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Brandon Oglenski with Barclays. Line is open. Brandon Oglenski: Hey, good afternoon, and thanks for letting me ask a question here. Kevin, I know you spoke to guidance for, I guess, greater than 350 basis points improvement in the margin on the fourth quarter. How do we think about that sequentially? I think you did give some detail around headcount and PS&O. Kevin S. Boone: Yeah. Thanks, Brandon. When you think about, the third quarter to fourth quarter, there is typical seasonality in that We are hitting the winter months, so you will see PS&O typically move up a little bit. On the labor side, as you move into vacations, heavier vacations around holidays, other things, capital programs move off. You will see a little bit of labor. Cost come in, but that is typically normal seasonality. So if you look back out after, the last 3 to 5 years, 200 to 300 basis points of margin degradation from third quarter, fourth quarter. Obviously, all the initiatives we are doing, we are looking to offset as much as. Of that as we can, but there is new. Normal seasonality that we will see and we anticipate on both of those cost line items. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Jonathan Chappell with Evercore ISI. Your line is open. Jonathan Chappell: You. Good afternoon. I do not know if Mike's on the call. And if not, guess someone else could answer it. But, Maryclare Kenney mentioned, some temporary issues in Atlanta. You know, we watched the weekly data. It looks like there were some ebbs and flows as the volume remained strong through the third quarter. Do you feel as you are stepping away about the resourcing not just of labor, we have talked about headcount, but all the different things that go into if we do have a peak season and a cyclical recovery for the next couple of quarters. Do you feel that you are operating efficiently enough and can add resources on a less than 1 for 1 basis to keep those service metrics? Or you would like to keep them throughout the year? Stephen F. Angel: Yeah. So what we are doing, again, we mentioned. This is Steve. What we mentioned was coming out of the third quarter third quarter is improvement over second quarter. October is improvement over the numbers you are seeing in the third quarter. But the focus is this, on the service side. We continue to refine our capacity plan including positioning of resources based on the expected demand, and we do work. Do that working very closely with Maryclare Claire's organization. You know, better planning and coordination between engineering and transportation is creating less disruption on our network, which gives our ops team more freedom to operate. We have been in. Investing in capacity where needed. And Atlanta is a good example of that where we have seen a 50% increase in volume over the last 3 years. And we are investing in track infrastructure, to increase our switching and processing capacity by 50%. And, of course, good crew management is part of the equation to improve T&E in addition to adding a modest number of T&E headcount. So that is what we are doing. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Ken Hoexter with Bank of America. Your line is open. Ken Hoexter: Hey, great. Good afternoon, good evening. So Kevin or Steve, PS&O dipped 400 basis points year over year, maybe even more than you thought. Maybe talk about some of the specific programs or just such a great achievement. How structural is this? What goes on? Because, I mean, we have seen waves at CSX of market improvement. Then there was slippage, before you got there, Steve. So just wondering, how you do that. And then in that 53 basis point target, if you are continuing to do this improvement, you did a 400-basis-point improvement 3Q to 4Q I guess, Kevin, is there any reason you could or could not do the same level of improvement in the 4 quarter year over year? Kevin S. Boone: Again, yeah, look, part of the guidance for the fourth quarter is we have seen some extreme volatility on the fuel side, right? So when you think about the third quarter, we had peak diesel prices. And coming into the quarter, that accounted for probably a little over 100 basis points of margin pressure versus what we had expected coming in just from the fuel price increase. So we are we are looking to eye on that. We will have better clarity as we move through the quarter on there, in terms of PS&O, specifically, I would say, first, first areas we always look at are the costs that we are paying others. Outside of CSX and I have to give a lot of credit to the team, the procurement team, the operations team to really take a closer look at those costs that we are paying and, really, some of those that we have, insourced other times, we are we are challenging those costs and getting better rates, through our suppliers, but it is across the board. And, whether it is vehicles, whether it is equipment, asset utilization, a big, big focus on the asset utilization side. Just rates in general, as I said, external labor rates, we really look closely at and making sure there is a level of accountability when we are paying others on the outside. And in terms of the pipeline, as Steve talked about it, over 100 initiatives already, we started in the second quarter. I think it is the earliest, we have ever started in my 9 years here at CSX in terms of thinking about the next year. We are really building that muscle and building that continuous improvement kinda mindset around here. In fact, we are already thinking about 2028 as well as we think about 2027. So we are a deep bench. I would also say on the technology side, that is another area where I just see a lot of opportunity to provide greater resources, greater clarity in terms of where the spend is. And we are seeing some early signs of that. I would say some more to be done in the next year and 2028. But those visibility tools allow the leaders out there to really identify costs and go after them. But it is across the board. Great job by the team. And there is a lot of ownership across the organization for it. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Dan Moore with Baird. Your line is open. Dan Moore: Hey, guys. Thanks for the question. cannot remember if it was Tom or Christian that asked a question on intermodal earlier in the call. But maybe as a follow on to that, it is a pretty rare environment we find ourselves in right now, specifically as it relates to domestic intermodal. And the spread between highway to rail costs probably as great as I have ever seen it in the last 30 years. With that in mind, recognizing that know, domestic intermodal tends to be higher touch in terms of renewals, and that it could be a fairly meaningful driver of yield moving forward. Could you maybe just spend a minute refreshing our memories on how you approach a market like this? And the potential impact it might have going forward? Thanks. Maryclare Kenney: Sure. Happy to. So on intermodal, just as a starting point, we gotta remember that the business is split between domestic and international. So maybe just starting, I know the questions around domestic. But on the international side, that is an important part of our overall intermodal portfolio. I have mentioned it before. A lot of that business is contracted under multiyear deals. That have fixed adjustments. And I would say it is not highly correlated to the trucking market like you see on the domestic side. On the domestic business, know, it is a mixture of how our contracts are structured. I would say, we think about domestic bid season. it is kind of starting right now for 2027. I think you have heard from us. You have heard from others over the course of this year that the truck market inflection that is occurred, the tightness in capacity really started after we were a good way into the 2026 bid season. And so there is a lag effect to that. Certainly, as we are looking at new renewals on annual contracts, which we see a lot in our real asset product, know, we are gonna price to the market. We are taking into account what is going on out there. We are looking at capacity. We are looking at the value of the service that we provide. We have other business, though, that is not necessarily on an annual application, and so, we will manage that. And make sure we are continuing to price to the value of the service as those come up for renewal. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Ariel Rosa with Citigroup. Your line is open. Ariel Rosa: Yeah. Hi. Afternoon and congrats on some strong results here and also congrats to Mike on his retirement. I was hoping you guys could speak quickly about, just the rail partnerships, the progress there, the level of volumes that you are seeing across some of the partnerships with BN, CN, and CP and how you are thinking about that particularly in the context of the opposition that you have announced to what UPS is proposing and how you see the partnerships reflected as kind of a counterweight to some of the issues that they have raised. Thanks. Maryclare Kenney: Yes. Good afternoon. So, I have talked about it before. I spent a lot of time in my career here on the intermodal side of the business, and I would tell you it is been common practice for CSX to work closely with our interline partners. To try to find new and, in some cases, better solutions for our customers. So that is nothing new for us. We have done this kind of year in and year out. We are always looking for ways across our lines of business. But I would say, in particular, when you think about intermodal, trying to find solutions that improve transit and improve reliability for our customers. And so we are committed to continuing to do that. We have been happy with the results we have seen with the partnerships we formed over the last several years. And we will continue to work on those going forward. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Spracklin with RBC Capital Markets. Your line is open. Spracklin: Yeah. Thanks very much, operator. Good afternoon, everyone. Got a question here for Kevin. And this is really on the cost side. And I know if we look back at second quarter, both truck and rail had pretty good quarters there. But here in the third quarter, we have seen some warnings in the in the truck segment, mainly on the back of higher costs. I guess truck is going to be more exposed to fuel costs and labor costs, and that might explain the difference in the relative cost experience that you are seeing relative to truck. But, Kevin, is there. Outside of fuel, is there anything you are seeing in terms of cost pressure that worries you going into 2027 Anything that is popping up on the labor side with any of the know, obviously, we are seeing driver shortages, but are you seeing any shortages on your end in terms of your attempts to hire Anything on the cost side that. that is keeping you awake at night as we are looking at 2020 Yeah. Kevin S. Boone: You know, thank you. Thanks for the question. I spent a lot of time with the quality team here recently, and look, it is the same driver shortages, across the market. They are experiencing that. That should be obviously a good demand environment, and, that is something that we have talked at length about. You know, to put it bluntly, quality has a lot of opportunity. And, there is a lot of opportunity on the cost side, and there is a lot of opportunity to price to the market. And so we are looking at all those opportunities. We are. We will be meeting here next month to put together the 2027 plan but I expect some improvement as we move into next year in that business. Driver recruitment is going to be a big, big focus of that team, but also driving cost out of the business. And then the pricing side, as the market turns and there is limited capacity, quality, in particular, should be benefiting from that. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Bascome Majors with Stephen. Your line is open. Bascome Majors: Yep. Can you talk about the tests you guys are doing on the zero-to-zero fuel savings technology. What are you getting in the field? what is your sense of the path to FRA approval there? And is any of that productivity factored into some of the comments you made about opportunities in 2027? Thank you. Kevin S. Boone: Yes. I mean, we have been using trip optimizer for some period of time, and we have seen benefits in terms of fuel efficiency from that. What you are mentioning is the zero to zero, which is start to stop, And that is partially implemented. We continue to work through the test process with the FRA, and I would expect eventually that will be approved, and we will be able to take that capability across the entire fleet. And our next question comes from the line of Jason Seidl with TD Cowen. Operator: Your line is open. Jason Seidl: Thank you, operator, and thanks for taking the question here. First of all, definite shout out to the operations team there, impressive quarter and congrats on the retirement there to Mike. Maryclare Kenney, questions to you. I know a lot's been said about intermodal and the opportunity there, but obviously a tighter truck market in fuel cost out east also presents an opportunity for your carload business. Maybe you could talk a little bit about that and what your team is doing to sort of go after that freight. Maryclare Kenney: Yeah. Absolutely. I would tell you, we are working on opportunities across our markets, and, we have certainly seen as truck capacity has tightened additional opportunities over the course of last quarter. I think a great example in the impact in terms of business trends is in our forest products segment. So we came into this year. That was 1 of the areas we were most concerned about quite frankly, because we saw quite a few closures on the paper and pulp side last year. And then, obviously, the segment's very tied to housing, which we all know has been lackluster for an extended period of time. While we really have not seen any improvement in the demand side of the equation in that market, The team has done a really nice job. As we have seen truck capacity tighten. This market does have a lot of truck utilization, and so with both our building product shippers as well as our paper shippers, working with them to identify new solutions that we can deliver and increase capacity that we can provide to help support their needs. But we are really doing this across markets because there is opportunities that present themselves and I feel optimistic about that as we close out this year and go into next year. Operator: Our next question comes from the line of Ravi Shanker with Jordan Stanley. Analyst: Just a housekeeping here. The other revenue line was pretty strong this quarter. I just wanted to see if there were any unusual items there and kind of what do we think is the run rate of that line going forward? Thank you. Kevin S. Boone: Yeah. You know, the biggest drivers of that upside that we saw in the third quarter really related to an in-transit reserve and then a little bit higher in intermodal storage cost as you have seen that market tighten. As you look at the fourth quarter, when you look at the average for the year, we have been averaging in that mid-$130s. Per quarter when you average it. We will probably do a little bit better than that. In the fourth quarter depending on intermodal continuing its tightness in some other areas, but around that around that level. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of David Vernon with Bernstein. Your line is open. David Vernon: Hey, team. Thanks for taking the question. So Mary Claire, within the carload business, back in June, you guys had turned on surcharges for the carload business, I think. Can you share how much incremental fuel revenue that tariff traffic sort of generated with the introduction of those surcharges for the third quarter? Maryclare Kenney: Yes. I do not think we are not going to put a precise number out there. I would say just across the board, we are we are making sure our fuel cost have gone up, that we are being thoughtful about that and have conversation with the customers, and they understand they are seeing similar impacts on the trucking side. Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Richa Harnain with Deutsche Bank. Your line is open. Richa Harnain: Hey. So another 1 for Maryclare Kenney. Sorry. You are getting so much airtime today, Maryclare Kenney. So I just wanted to ask. You know, you mentioned customers looking to push more growth to intermodal. I think we all see that, and you are finding more conversion opportunities I guess, what are the biggest issues or bottlenecks to picking up this growth from customers that are not so eager? What is left to solve to make this more seamless? And I guess, what more do customers want? And, how are you ensuring that the growth is sticky and if TL rates begin to fall, and that will not lead to an unwind of some of this tailwind. Maryclare Kenney: Absolutely. So I will maybe start with the tail end of the question. I think customers see the value of rail. You know, in all environments, but it is accelerated certainly as you think about where fuel prices are today and where capacity is. I think what is important and what I have seen since, the 15 years that I have been here is the most important thing to customers is consistent and reliable service. And so that is why there is so much effort and work between my team and operating team to ensure that as we are converting business, we are making sure we are delivering a good service product to our customers so that it is long term and it is sustainable. When I think about, what as I think about the conversion opportunity, there is certainly a lot of interest right now with what is going on in the broader market. Sometimes it is education with the customers, making sure they understand, where there is opportunity to convert. We do have a national accounts program from an intermodal perspective where we engage directly with the shipper. We will look at their truckload file confidentially for them. We will evaluate the truckload load file and show them where there is lanes that are opportunities for intermodal conversion, and then give them visibility to what service looks like in those lanes so they have more comfort in terms of transitioning that from truck to rail. As I think about the cycle that we are in right now, I know questions have been asked about box capacity, chassis, all of those things. I think the area that we are keeping the most focused on right now is the drayage driver. And so you have heard from some of our channel partners there is a lot of focus there. there is been an effort in terms of recruiting additional drivers. I would say as you think about the broader market, obviously, driver capacity is challenging over the road. The benefit on the drayage side is it is a more efficient move. You can make more turns in a given day. And so I think there is more opportunity there as we go forward. Operator: And our final question comes from the line of Jeffrey Kauffman with Citizens Bank. Your line is open. Jeff Kaufman: Thank you very much. Thank you for squeezing me in, and congratulations on a very solid quarter. Kind of a follow-up. Actually, I am going to give Maryclare Kenney a break and then go back to the operations team. You know, a lot of productivity improvement and safety improvement this quarter Can you give us an idea of where you would like these metrics to be within, say, 12 months, 24 months? And what that could mean in terms of driving incremental operating if you are able to hit those targets? Stephen F. Angel: Well, I think in terms of continuous improvement. You know, as I look at the safety metrics, as I look at our operating ratios, operating everything, I think in terms of what can we do to improve. And, we have a whole company that is dedicated to that. You know, Kevin alluded to and I. Or I did earlier that, we have little over 100 initiatives that we are working on 2027 productivity. Now, we are starting to work on 2028. So to me, it is all about driving productivity. it is all about continuous improvement. it is all about improving our safety metrics, our service metrics, our financial metrics so that we can deliver best in class performance. And best in class performance for our employees, for our customers, and for our shareholders. Operator: And ladies and gentlemen, this concludes our question-and-answer session and today's conference call. We thank you for your participation, and you may now disconnect. 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While we strive for our Foolish Best, there may be errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in this transcript. As with all our articles, The Motley Fool does not assume any responsibility for your use of this content, and we strongly encourage you to do your own research, including listening to the call yourself and reading the company's SEC filings. Please see our Terms and Conditions for additional details, including our Obligatory Capitalized Disclaimers of Liability. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. CSX (CSX) Q3 2026 Earnings Call Transcript was originally published by The Motley Fool

This article first appeared on GuruFocus. - Earnings Per Share: $0.57, up 30% year over year (adjusted). - Revenue: Up 12% year over year, driven by higher fuel surcharge, 5% volume growth, and pricing gains. - Operating Margin: 39.1%, up 420 basis points versus prior-year adjusted results (despite 70 bps fuel price headwinds). - Operating Income: Up 25% year over year (adjusted for prior-year $164 million goodwill impairment). - Volume: Total volume up 5% year over year. - Revenue Per Unit: Up 7% overall; up 1% excluding fuel. - Merchandise Revenue: Up 11% on 3% volume growth; RPU up 8% including fuel, up over 2% excluding fuel. - Intermodal Revenue: Up 20% on 7% volume growth (all-time record volume); RPU up 13%, essentially all fuel-driven. - Coal Revenue: Up 10% on 2% volume growth and 7% RPU increase; export tons up 7%, domestic tons down modestly. - Labor Expense: Up $19 million, as productivity gains and lapping severance mostly offset over $90 million of higher incentive compensation and inflation. - PSO Expenses: Down 10%, driven by improved locomotive and vehicle utilization, reduced external labor, and G&A efficiencies. - Nonfuel Costs: Down 3% despite 5% higher volume. - Fuel Efficiency: Best ever achieved by CSX and best ever reported by any US railroad. - Safety Metrics: FRA injury rate down 17%; accident rate down 4% year over year. - Full-Year 2026 Guidance: Revenue growth now expected in the high single digits (raised from mid- to high single digits); operating margin expansion of more than 350 bps; capex below $2.4 billion; free cash flow growth of more than 80%. - Q4 2026 Outlook: Year-over-year margin improvement above 350 basis points expected. - Warning! GuruFocus has detected 9 Warning Signs with CSX. - Is CSX fairly valued? Test your thesis with our free DCF calculator. Release Date: October 21, 2026 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. - Earnings per share increased 30% year-over-year to $0.57, driven by revenue growth and margin expansion. - Volume grew 5% with revenue up 12%, reflecting strong demand and pricing gains across merchandise, intermodal, and coal. - Operating margin improved 420 basis points to 39.1%, highlighting significant productivity gains. - Record fuel efficiency achieved, the best ever reported by any US railroad, reducing costs and environmental impact. - Free cash flow growth expected to exceed 80% for the full year, with capital expenditures below $2.4 billion. - Fertilizer volume declined 13% due to supply issues and low crop prices, pressuring merchandise performance. - Intermodal trip plan compliance declined, indicating service challenges despite overall volume growth. - Labor expenses rose $19 million due to higher incentive compensation and inflation, partially offsetting productivity gains. - Fuel price volatility created a 70 basis point margin headwind in the quarter, with potential for continued near-term noise. - Sequential margin degradation of 200-300 basis points expected in Q4 due to normal seasonality and winter weather impacts. Q: Chris Wetherbee of Wells Fargo asked about the productivity opportunity ahead for 2027, given the strong margin expansion in 2026 and growing volume.A: CEO Steve Angel said the company already has over 100 initiatives contributing to its 2027 productivity target. He noted 2027 won't be as big as 2026 but will still be a significant number, and the team is very encouraged about productivity going into 2027. Q: Brian Ossenbeck of JPMorgan asked how CSX will structure its operating department following Mike Quarry's retirement, including whether it will be a dual COO role or involve an external search.A: CEO Steve Angel said Casey Albright (network ops and service design) and Doug Ryhorchuk (engineering, mechanical and transportation) will continue in their roles and report directly to him. Angel, who described himself as an operating CEO with a manufacturing and lean production background, said he looks forward to getting more involved in operations. Q: Stephanie Moore of Jefferies asked about the pricing opportunity for 2027, excluding fuel, given inflationary pressures.A: A company representative said pricing remains a key focus and CSX is taking a surgical approach, having inflation conversations with customers during renewals. Same-store sales pricing is expected to be stronger than last year, and discretionary pricing in merchandise has accelerated through the year. Q: Scott Group of Wolfe Research asked about the sustainability of volume growththe third straight year of growthand whether the network needs more people or locomotives to handle it.A: CEO Steve Angel said he is encouraged by the growth initiatives and momentum going into next year. He expressed confidence in the network's ability to handle the volume, noting CSX is adding modest T&E headcount to ensure it is properly manned to serve current and expected business. Q: Tom Wadewitz of UBS asked about the key drivers of domestic intermodal volume growth and how much runway remains, including UMAX, Howard Street Tunnel and CP interline.A: CEO Steve Angel said domestic has driven growth this year while international has been relatively flat. He cited continued volume growth from SMX and the Howard Street Tunnel, where full double-stack clearances came after most of the 2026 bid season, and said CSX is excited to enter the 2027 bid season with that solution. Tightening truck capacity is also driving truck-to-rail conversions. Q: Brandon Oglenski of Barclays asked how to think about fourth-quarter margin sequentially, given guidance for more than 350 basis points of year-over-year improvement.A: CFO Kevin Boone cited normal seasonality: PSO typically moves up in winter months, and labor costs rise with heavier holiday vacations and capital programs winding down. He noted 200 to 300 basis points of typical third-to-fourth-quarter margin degradation in recent years, which CSX aims to offset as much as possible. Q: Jonathan Chappell of Evercore ISI asked whether CSX feels adequately resourcedlabor and otherwiseto handle a peak season and cyclical recovery while maintaining service metrics, referencing temporary issues in Atlanta.A: CEO Steve Angel said service improved from Q2 to Q3 and October is better still. CSX is refining its capacity plan and positioning resources with the commercial team, improving engineering-transportation coordination, and investing in capacityincluding Atlanta, where volume is up 50% over three years and switching capacity is being expanded by 50%along with good crew management and modest T&E hiring. Q: Ken Hoexter of Bank of America asked how structural the roughly 400 basis point year-over-year PSO improvement is, and whether a similar improvement is achievable in the fourth quarter.A: CFO Kevin Boone credited procurement and operations with challenging external costs, improving supplier rates, and boosting asset utilization across vehicles, equipment and external labor. He noted over 100 initiatives already identified for 2027the earliest start in his nine yearswith planning for 2028 underway, plus technology providing better cost visibility. On Q4, he flagged extreme fuel volatility, with peak diesel prices pressuring Q3 margins by over 100 basis points versus expectations. Q: Dan Moore of Baird asked how CSX approaches domestic intermodal pricing given the unusually wide highway-to-rail cost spread and the higher-touch nature of renewals.A: A company representative noted international intermodal is largely under multiyear contracts with fixed adjustments and is not highly correlated to trucking. Domestic 2027 bid season is starting now, and because the truck market tightened well into the 2026 bid season, there is a lag effect; CSX will price annual renewals to the market, capacity and service value, and manage other business as it comes up for renewal. Q: Ari Rosa of Citigroup asked about progress on rail partnerships with BN, CN and CP, and how those partnerships weigh against CSX's opposition to the UPS proposal.A: Chief Commercial Officer Maryclare Kenney said working closely with interline partners to find better customer solutions is long-standing common practice at CSX, particularly in intermodal, aimed at improving transit and reliability. She said CSX has been happy with results from partnerships formed over the last several years and will continue pursuing them. Q: Walter Spracklin of RBC asked whether CSX sees cost pressureslabor, hiring or otherwisethat could be concerning going into 2027, given trucking cost warnings.A: CFO Kevin Boone acknowledged driver shortages across the market, which support a good demand environment. He said there is significant cost and pricing opportunity, with the 2027 plan being assembled next month, and he expects improvement next year driven by driver recruitment, cost reduction and pricing as capacity tightens. Q: Jason Seidl of TD Cowen asked how the tighter truck market and higher eastern fuel costs create opportunities for the carload business and what the commercial team is doing to capture that freight.A: CCO Maryclare Kenney said CSX is pursuing opportunities across markets as truck capacity tightens, citing Forest Productsan area of concern entering the year due to paper and pulp closures and weak housingwhere the team has worked with building products and paper shippers to identify new rail solutions and add capacity. Q: Richa Harnain of Deutsche Bank asked about the biggest bottlenecks to converting truck freight to intermodal, what customers want, and how CS For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

For the quarter ended September 2026, CSX (CSX) reported revenue of $4.02 billion, up 12% over the same period last year. EPS came in at $0.57, compared to $0.44 in the year-ago quarter. The reported revenue compares to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.95 billion, representing a surprise of +1.66%. The company delivered an EPS surprise of +9.62%, with the consensus EPS estimate being $0.52. While investors closely watch year-over-year changes in headline numbers -- revenue and earnings -- and how they compare to Wall Street expectations to determine their next course of action, some key metrics always provide a better insight into a company's underlying performance. As these metrics influence top- and bottom-line performance, comparing them to the year-ago numbers and what analysts estimated helps investors project a stock's price performance more accurately. Here is how CSX performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts: - Operating Margin: 39.1% versus the four-analyst average estimate of 62.7%. - Volume - Merchandise - Minerals: 103 thousand versus the three-analyst average estimate of 99.72 thousand. - Revenue ton-miles: 50.7 billion versus 52.16 billion estimated by three analysts on average. - Revenue per unit - Intermodal: $773.00 versus $789.40 estimated by three analysts on average. - Revenue- Coal: $537 million compared to the $539.02 million average estimate based on three analysts. The reported number represents a change of +9.6% year over year. - Revenue- Intermodal: $634 million versus $646.23 million estimated by three analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +20.3% change. - Revenue- Merchandise- Fertilizers: $118 million versus $139.1 million estimated by two analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a -6.4% change. - Revenue- Merchandise- Chemicals: $790 million versus $780.41 million estimated by two analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +13.3% change. - Revenue- Merchandise- Automotive: $325 million versus $325.11 million estimated by two analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +6.2% change. - Revenue- Merchandise- Minerals: $246 million versus $232.96 million estimated by two analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +8.9% change. - Revenue- Merchandise- Forest Products: $277 million compared to the $276.25 million average estimate based on two analysts. The reported number represents a change of +12.2% year over year. - Revenue- Total Merchandise: $2.45 billion versus $2.45 billion estimated by two analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +11.1% change. View all Key Company Metrics for CSX here>>> Shares of CSX have returned +3.2% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +1% change. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), indicating that it could perform in line with the broader market in the near term. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report CSX Corporation (CSX) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) is scheduled to report its earnings on Thursday, October 22, 2026. The company has a market value of about $73.1 billion. Over the last twelve months it generated $12.5 billion in revenue and $4.6 billion in operating profit, with net income of $2.6 billion. How the stock moves after the release will depend on how the results and outlook compare with expectations. What history can offer is the base rate: how often, and how far, the stock has moved after past reports. One caveat: Union Pacific has agreed to acquire Norfolk Southern, and a US regulator resumed its review of the deal in August. While that is pending, deal news may move the stock as much as the results. See the earnings reaction history of all stocks Norfolk Southern's Historical Odds Of A Positive Post-Earnings Return Some observations on one-day (1D) post-earnings returns, measured from the last close before each release: - There are 20 earnings releases in the last five years, with 9 positive and 11 negative one-day (1D) returns. Positive 1D returns were seen 45% of the time. - Over the last three years that share rises to 50%, across 12 releases. - The median of the 9 positive 1D returns is 2.9%, and the median of the 11 negative ones is -2.1%. - The largest one-day reactions were 10.9% and -5.3%. The table below shows the 1D, 5-day (5D) and 21-day (21D) returns after each release, followed by summary statistics. Earnings Date | 1D | 5D | 21D 7/23/2026 | 5.3% | 1.5% | 5.2% 4/24/2026 | -0.5% | -1.7% | -1.7% 1/29/2026 | 2.0% | 7.9% | 11.1% 10/23/2025 | -1.2% | -0.8% | 1.4% 7/29/2025 | -3.0% | -2.4% | -2.9% 4/23/2025 | 0.9% | 1.5% | 9.5% 1/29/2025 | 1.8% | 0.2% | -3.5% 10/22/2024 | 4.9% | 2.2% | 5.2% 7/25/2024 | 10.9% | 10.6% | 8.6% 4/24/2024 | -3.6% | -6.0% | -5.3% 1/26/2024 | -1.5% | 7.9% | 7.6% 10/25/2023 | -5.3% | -2.8% | 9.8% 7/27/2023 | -0.7% | -2.8% | -11.5% 4/26/2023 | -2.9% | -1.6% | 2.5% 1/25/2023 | -5.0% | -3.9% | -12.0% 10/26/2022 | 2.9% | 6.6% | 17.0% 7/27/2022 | -0.6% | 1.4% | 6.7% 4/27/2022 | 3.1% | 0.6% | -8.2% 1/26/2022 | -2.1% | -0.1% | -7.1% 10/27/2021 | 0.1% | -0.3% | -2.8% Statistic | 1D | 5D | 21D # Positive | 9 | 10 | 11 # Negative | 11 | 10 | 9 Median Positive | 2.9% | 1.9% | 7.6% Median Negative | -2.1% | -2.1% | -5.3% Max Positive | 10.9% | 10.6% | 17.0% Max Negative | -5.3% | -6.0% | -12.0% Correlation Between 1D, 5D, And 21D Post-Earnings Returns Another approach is to wait for the initial reaction and ask whether it tends to continue. The table below shows the correlation between the 1D return and the return over the following 5 and 21 trading days, and between the 5D return and the following 21 trading days. A value near 1 means the first move has tended to continue; near -1, to reverse; near 0, no consistent pattern. None of these correlations is strong enough to trade on: all are below 0.40 in absolute terms over five years, so the early post-earnings move has not reliably predicted what followed. History | 1D vs next 5D | 1D vs next 21D | 5D vs next 21D 5 Years | -0.36 | -0.08 | 0.32 3 Years | -0.36 | -0.34 | 0.07 Trading around earnings is a bet on a single event. If you want upside with a smoother ride than an individual stock such as NSC can offer, consider the Trefis High Quality (HQ) Portfolio: about 30 stocks selected for consistent cash generation, strong margins and resilient balance sheets, with a track record of outperforming a benchmark that combines the S&P 500, the S&P MidCap 400, and the Russell 2000.

- Interested in CSX Corporation? Here are five stocks we like better. - Strong third-quarter results: CSX reported adjusted EPS of $0.57, up 30% year over year, while revenue rose 12%, volume increased 5% and operating margin expanded 420 basis points to 39.1%. Lower non-fuel costs and productivity gains also drove substantial free-cash-flow growth. - Intermodal led growth: Intermodal volume increased 7% to a record level, with revenue up 20%, while merchandise and coal revenue rose 11% and 10%, respectively. Fertilizer was a weak spot, with volume down 13% because of supply constraints and low crop prices. - 2026 outlook raised: CSX now expects high-single-digit revenue growth in 2026, operating-margin expansion of more than 350 basis points, capital expenditures below $2.4 billion and free-cash-flow growth exceeding 80%. - This Corner of the Market Is Outperforming the Benchmark—And It's Not AI CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) reported third-quarter earnings per share of $0.57, up 30% from the prior year's adjusted result, as volume growth, pricing gains and lower non-fuel costs helped lift profitability. President and Chief Executive Officer Steve Angel said revenue rose 12% during the quarter, while total volume increased 5%. Operating margin reached 39.1%, representing a 420-basis-point improvement from the prior year's adjusted result. The company also said it generated substantial free-cash-flow growth through productivity initiatives. → The AI Sell-Off Continues—These 3 Stocks Keep Raising Guidance Anyway - MarketBeat Week in Review – 08/18 - 08/22 "Our volume grew 5% as more customers turned to our railroad to safely and reliably move their goods," Angel said. "The progress we continue to make on productivity has helped drive substantial growth in profitability, earnings, and free cash flow." Angel said CSX's Federal Railroad Administration injury rate declined 17% year over year in the third quarter, while its accident rate fell 4%. He said the company continued to focus on reducing risk, increasing awareness and improving communication across its operations. → Tesla's Roadster Reveal Hints at 2 Much Bigger Moves - This Railroad Stock Is Chugging Along to a New All-Time High The company also cited record fuel efficiency, which Angel said was the best ever achieved by CSX and the best reported by a U.S. railroad. Workforce efficiency, measured by gross ton miles per employee, improved substantially from a year earlier. Service metrics improved sequentially, including velocity, dwell time and customer switching performance. Carload trip-plan compliance improved modestly from the prior quarter, though intermodal trip-plan compliance declined. Angel said October service performance had started strongly, with velocity averaging more than 19 miles per hour and dwell approaching 10 hours. → Luxury's Middle Market Is Cracking—These 3 Stocks Could Win CSX is using closer coordination between its commercial and operating organizations to better position crews and locomotives for demand, Angel said. The company is also using technology, including autonomous track inspection cars, to improve planning and reduce delays. Angel also recognized Mike Cory, who recently announced his retirement after 45 years in the railroad industry. Casey Albright, who oversees network operations and service design, and Doug Ryhorchuk, who oversees engineering, mechanical and transportation, will report directly to Angel going forward. Chief Financial Officer Kevin Boone said higher fuel surcharge revenue, volume growth and pricing gains in merchandise, intermodal and coal supported the 12% revenue increase. He noted that third-quarter 2025 results included a $164 million goodwill impairment charge. Excluding that item, operating income increased 25% in the latest quarter. Non-fuel costs declined 3% despite the 5% increase in volume. Labor expense rose $19 million, as productivity gains and lower severance expense mostly offset more than $90 million in higher incentive compensation and inflation-related costs, Boone said. Purchase services and other expenses declined 10%, reflecting improved utilization of locomotives and vehicles, reduced external labor, lower general and administrative costs, maintenance efficiencies and the absorption of intermodal volume growth. Boone said CSX expects normal seasonal cost increases in the fourth quarter, including higher purchase services and other costs and lower fuel efficiency during winter months. Labor costs are also expected to rise sequentially due to seasonal factors. The company expects fourth-quarter year-over-year operating-margin expansion of more than 350 basis points. For 2026, CSX raised its revenue-growth outlook to the high-single-digit percentage range, from a prior expectation of mid- to high-single-digit growth. It maintained guidance for full-year operating-margin expansion of more than 350 basis points, capital expenditures below $2.4 billion and free-cash-flow growth of more than 80%. Chief Commercial Officer Maryclare Kenney said intermodal remained the largest contributor to volume growth. Total intermodal volume rose 7% year over year to a record level, while intermodal revenue increased 20% and revenue per unit climbed 13%. Nearly all of the revenue-per-unit increase came from fuel surcharge, she said. Domestic intermodal drove the segment's growth, while international intermodal volumes were roughly flat from a year earlier. Kenney attributed domestic demand to tight trucking capacity, high truck rates and elevated diesel prices, as well as new service offerings through Birmingham, Myrtlewood and Baltimore. She said CSX expects further benefits as customers enter the 2027 bid season with full double-stack operations available through the company's I-95 corridor via Baltimore. The company is also working with channel partners and shippers to identify freight that can be converted from truck to rail. Merchandise revenue increased 11%, as volume rose 3%. Metals volume climbed 12%, supported by steel demand in infrastructure and energy markets and output growth from new steel mills served by CSX. Chemicals volume increased 7%, aided by conversions and demand for waste and petroleum products. Fertilizer was the weakest merchandise category, with volume down 13%. Kenney cited supply constraints limiting phosphate shipments as well as low crop prices that have affected fertilizer affordability and demand. Coal revenue increased 10%, driven by a 2% volume increase and a 7% gain in revenue per unit. Export coal volume rose 7% as mine output increased, while domestic coal volumes declined modestly during a mild summer and with natural-gas prices around $3, Kenney said. Looking toward 2027, Angel said the company has identified more than 100 initiatives that are expected to contribute to productivity efforts next year. He said 2027 productivity gains may not match the scale of 2026 but should still be significant. CSX also plans to add modestly to its train and engine employee pipeline to support growth, while continuing to size its workforce for a safe, reliable and efficient railroad. Angel said the company is investing in capacity where needed, including in Atlanta, where volume has increased 50% over the past three years and CSX is expanding switching and processing capacity by 50%. 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. This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected]. The article "CSX Q3 Earnings Call Highlights" was originally published by MarketBeat. View MarketBeat's top stocks for October 2026.

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) is scheduled to report its earnings on Thursday, October 22, 2026. The company has a market value of about $170.7 billion. Over the last twelve months it generated $25.4 billion in revenue and $10.2 billion in operating profit, with net income of $7.3 billion. Nobody knows how the market will take the numbers. What we can measure is how Union Pacific stock has reacted to its past earnings releases, which is useful context for anyone trading around the event. See the earnings reaction history of all stocks How Often Has Union Pacific Stock Risen After Earnings? Some observations on one-day (1D) post-earnings returns, measured from the last close before each release: - There are 19 earnings releases in the last five years, with 9 positive and 10 negative one-day (1D) returns. Positive 1D returns were seen 47% of the time. - Over the last three years that share falls to 45%, across 11 releases. - The median of the 9 positive 1D returns is 4.0%, and the median of the 10 negative ones is -2.1%. - The largest one-day reactions were 10.4% and -6.8%. The table below shows the 1D, 5-day (5D) and 21-day (21D) returns after each release, followed by summary statistics. Earnings Date | 1D | 5D | 21D 7/23/2026 | 4.0% | -0.1% | 3.9% 4/23/2026 | 8.8% | 6.2% | 6.4% 1/27/2026 | 0.7% | 1.9% | 14.4% 10/23/2025 | -2.3% | -3.9% | -1.8% 7/24/2025 | -4.5% | -2.5% | -2.5% 4/24/2025 | -2.0% | -1.9% | 1.4% 1/23/2025 | 5.2% | 5.8% | 4.1% 10/24/2024 | -4.4% | -3.8% | -1.0% 7/25/2024 | -0.9% | 3.9% | 2.9% 4/25/2024 | 5.0% | 1.3% | 0.3% 1/25/2024 | -0.3% | 0.7% | 6.0% 10/19/2023 | 2.1% | -0.3% | 6.5% 7/26/2023 | 10.4% | 7.4% | 3.5% 4/20/2023 | 0.3% | -5.2% | -1.6% 1/24/2023 | -3.3% | -4.7% | -8.9% 10/20/2022 | -6.8% | -2.1% | 4.9% 7/21/2022 | -1.2% | 2.5% | 12.8% 4/21/2022 | -1.1% | -4.2% | -12.4% 1/20/2022 | 1.1% | 2.3% | 4.8% Statistic | 1D | 5D | 21D # Positive | 9 | 9 | 13 # Negative | 10 | 10 | 6 Median Positive | 4.0% | 2.5% | 4.8% Median Negative | -2.1% | -3.1% | -2.1% Max Positive | 10.4% | 7.4% | 14.4% Max Negative | -6.8% | -5.2% | -12.4% Correlation Between 1D, 5D, And 21D Post-Earnings Returns Another approach is to wait for the initial reaction and ask whether it tends to continue. The table below shows the correlation between the 1D return and the return over the following 5 and 21 trading days, and between the 5D return and the following 21 trading days. A value near 1 means the first move has tended to continue; near -1, to reverse; near 0, no consistent pattern. The strongest relationship over five years is between the 1D and the following 5 days, at -0.48 across 19 releases: the early move has tended to partly reverse. That is a tendency, not a rule, and it can break on any given report. History | 1D vs next 5D | 1D vs next 21D | 5D vs next 21D 5 Years | -0.48 | -0.44 | -0.14 3 Years | -0.36 | -0.55 | -0.29 Does A Peer That Reports First Offer A Clue? JB Hunt Transport Services (JBHT) usually reports about a week before Union Pacific, and has already reported this season. Its stock fell 2.8% the day after its October 15 report. The table compares JBHT's one-day reaction to its own earnings with Union Pacific's one-day reaction to the report that followed. The correlation is -0.08, close to zero, so JBHT's reaction has not foreshadowed Union Pacific's in either direction. UNP Earnings Date | UNP 1D | JBHT 1D 7/23/2026 | 4.0% | 8.0% 4/23/2026 | 8.8% | 6.3% 1/27/2026 | 0.7% | -1.0% 10/23/2025 | -2.3% | 22.1% 7/24/2025 | -4.5% | 1.7% 4/24/2025 | -2.0% | -7.7% 1/23/2025 | 5.2% | -7.4% 10/24/2024 | -4.4% | 3.1% 7/25/2024 | -0.9% | -6.9% 4/25/2024 | 5.0% | -8.1% 1/25/2024 | -0.3% | 0.9% 10/19/2023 | 2.1% | -8.8% 7/26/2023 | 10.4% | 3.8% 4/20/2023 | 0.3% | -1.0% 1/24/2023 | -3.3% | 5.0% 10/20/2022 | -6.8% | 0.04% 7/21/2022 | -1.2% | -0.8% 4/21/2022 | -1.1% | 1.4% 1/20/2022 | 1.1% | 0.1% Correlation | - | -0.08 An earnings release can move one stock sharply in either direction. A diversified portfolio spreads that risk. The Trefis High Quality (HQ) Portfolio holds about 30 quality businesses, rebalanced with rules, and has a track record of outperforming a benchmark that combines the S&P 500, the S&P MidCap 400, and the Russell 2000.