CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Given New $50.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) had its price objective lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $40.00 to $50.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $46.00 target price (up from $40.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Vertical Research lowered CSX from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $44.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their target price on CSX from $42.50 to $45.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $41.00 target price (up from $37.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $46.00 target price (up from $44.00) on shares of CSX in a research report on Thursday. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.26.

CSX Stock Performance

Shares of CSX stock opened at $46.18 on Thursday. CSX has a one year low of $27.18 and a one year high of $46.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.33, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.25. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.04. CSX had a return on equity of 24.86% and a net margin of 21.55%.The business had revenue of $3.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.34 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that CSX will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CSX Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from CSX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. CSX’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CSX news, CAO Diana B. Sorfleet sold 90,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.56, for a total transaction of $3,740,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 165,613 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,882,876.28. The trade was a 35.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Stephen Fortune sold 31,456 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.65, for a total value of $1,215,774.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 82,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,170,614.10. This represents a 27.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 188,123 shares of company stock valued at $7,454,854. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CSX

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC bought a new position in shares of CSX in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,199,000. Rathbones Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 20.6% in the third quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 207,454 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $7,367,000 after acquiring an additional 35,403 shares in the last quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 131.0% in the third quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 71,918 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,577,000 after acquiring an additional 40,780 shares in the last quarter. Allstate Corp bought a new position in shares of CSX in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,363,000. Finally, Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC grew its holdings in shares of CSX by 81.9% in the third quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC now owns 944,946 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $33,555,000 after acquiring an additional 425,395 shares in the last quarter. 73.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about CSX

Here are the key news stories impacting CSX this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat on EPS and showed strong margin expansion and cash generation; management lifted the 2026 revenue outlook to mid‑single digits and flagged significant free‑cash‑flow upside — this underpins the rally. CSX Q1 Earnings Beat Estimates, Revenues Lag, 2026 View Raised
• Positive Sentiment: Operational improvements (efficiency initiatives, network expansion, record fuel efficiency) drove margin gains and lower operating expenses — a structural positive for future EPS and cash flow. CSX Q1 Deep Dive: Efficiency Initiatives and Network Expansion Drive Margin Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple brokerages raised price targets and ratings (Jefferies, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, Raymond James, BofA, RBC, etc.), reflecting the quarter and improved guidance — analyst support helped lift investor demand. These Analysts Increase Their Forecasts On CSX After Q1 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large bullish options activity (heavy call buying) and notable insider buying (CEO purchased shares) suggest short‑term speculative and management conviction support. Quiver Quant: CSX jumps as Q1 profit beats expectations and outlook improves
• Neutral Sentiment: The top‑line was roughly flat — revenue modestly missed estimates while volumes rose slightly; investors will watch whether revenue growth keeps pace with margin gains. CSX Q1 Earnings Beat Estimates, Revenues Lag, 2026 View Raised (Zacks)
• Neutral Sentiment: The stock traded near a 52‑week high after results — positive momentum but raises the bar for future beats. CSX rallies to a new 52-week high after showing operational improvement in Q1
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley downgraded CSX, saying the turnaround progress is largely priced in and valuation looks stretched (they set a much lower target) — this creates near‑term downside risk if future results disappoint. CSX Turnaround Largely Reflected in Stock Valuation, Morgan Stanley Says in Downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentators caution about price risk after the run‑up — elevated multiples mean the stock could be sensitive to any slowdown in volumes, pricing or margin recovery. CSX: Stellar Financial Report, But Price Risk Still Remains

About CSX

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

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