Is CSX (CSX) Quietly Undervalued After Recent Share Price Softness?

Simply Wall St

CSX (CSX) has been drifting slightly lower over the past month, even as its longer term returns remain positive. That mix of short term weakness and multi year strength is catching investors attention.

See our latest analysis for CSX.

At around $34.97, CSX’s recent soft patch, including a negative 30 day share price return, comes after a solid multi year total shareholder return. This suggests momentum has cooled a bit even as the long term story remains intact.

If CSX has you thinking more broadly about transportation and industrial demand, it might be a good moment to scout other opportunities among auto manufacturers.

With modest recent declines, solid multi year returns, and a small discount to analyst targets, the real question is whether CSX is quietly undervalued today or if the market already reflects its future growth potential.

Most Popular Narrative Narrative: 11% Undervalued

With CSX closing at $34.97 against a narrative fair value of $39.29, the story leans toward upside and depends heavily on execution.

The analysts have a consensus price target of $37.92 for CSX based on their expectations of its future earnings growth, profit margins and other risk factors. However, there is a degree of disagreement amongst analysts, with the most bullish reporting a price target of $44.0, and the most bearish reporting a price target of just $27.0.

Read the complete narrative.

Curious how steady revenue gains, thicker margins and shrinking share count can all coexist in one valuation story, without stretching the profit multiple too far?

Result: Fair Value of $39.29 (UNDERVALUED)

Have a read of the narrative in full and understand what's behind the forecasts.

However, lingering construction disruptions and exposure to volatile coal and fuel markets could pressure margins and derail the upside case if conditions worsen.

Find out about the key risks to this CSX narrative.

Build Your Own CSX Narrative

If this take does not quite match your view, or you would rather dive into the numbers yourself, you can build a custom thesis in just a few minutes: Do it your way.

A great starting point for your CSX research is our analysis highlighting 3 key rewards and 1 important warning sign that could impact your investment decision.

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Before you move on, you can plan your next research steps with focused stock ideas curated by Simply Wall St, so you are not leaving potential returns on the table.

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.

Valuation is complex, but we're here to simplify it.

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