CSX Beats on Earnings, Misses on Revenues

The Jacksonville, Florida-based company said Tuesday it earned $507 million, or 52 cents per share. CSX expects the headwinds in the coal market to continue into 2016, while its estimated coal exports outlook remains at 30 million tons. Consensus estimates were $0.50, which CSX beat by 4%.

Looking more closely at CSX’s numbers, you can see several crosscurrents that the railroad experienced.

In the third quarter, every category of freight CSX hauls declined, but coal alone accounted for nearly half of a 9 percent drop in revenue from the year-ago quarter. CSX Corp. has dropped 10.93% during the last 3-month period. Barclays maintains its rating on CSX Corporation (NYSE:CSX). According to the company’s earnings release, this was because of lower fuel recovery, “continued transition in CSX’s business mix”, and a 3% fall in volumes, which offset the gains made through higher prices. The transportation supply company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01, Marketbeat.com reports. Personal injury frequency declined 21%, and on-time origination and arrival figures jumped by double-digit percentages.

CSX Corporation (NYSE:CSX), together with its subsidiaries, is a transportation company.

The results demonstrated CSX’s “ability to leverage improving service while controlling costs in a dynamic environment where commodity prices and the strength of the USA dollar are challenging many of our markets”, Chief Executive Michael Ward said in a statement. The Company has three lines of business: coal company, goods business and the intermodal business.

Make sure to check back later for our full report on CSX’s earnings report!

CSX affirmed its prediction for 2015 profit growth in the mid-single digits despite the ongoing coal weakness and the overall decline in volume. The company’s long-term goal is to have operating efficiency ratios that are only slightly lower than they are now, and that shows just how much progress CSX has made in the past couple of years. On a weekly basis, the stock has appreciated by 6.5%.During the course of the session, the shares witnessed a block trade with an up/down ratio of 1.98. Even with coal’s ongoing troubles, CSX’s efforts to cut costs should pay off in the long run, especially when shipping volumes and revenue start moving back in the right direction.