CSX vs NSC vs FIP Stock Comparison

Csx, Norfolk Southern and FTAI Infrastructure Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CSX Csx Corp
$50.79 +7.6% 1M +42.9% 1Y
Market cap
$94.84B
P/E
26.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$14.95B
Div. yield
0.01%
Railroads Industrials
8 wins
NSC Norfolk Southern Corp
$329.85 +4.7% 1M +16.2% 1Y
Market cap
$75.04B
P/E
28.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$12.96B
Div. yield
0.02%
Railroads Industrials
1 win

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Csx leads on 8 of the 12 questions below (Csx 8, FTAI Infrastructure 3, Norfolk Southern 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCSXNSCFIPLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $94.84B $75.04B $295.41M CSX
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 26.5x 28.0x -0.5x CSX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 26.6x 27.3x — CSX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +5.9% +6.0% +72.3% FIP
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 24.0% 20.7% -91.9% CSX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 12.6% 9.7% -15.3% CSX
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.4x 2.7x -11.3x FIP
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.02% 0.05% FIP
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +42.9% +16.2% -54.2% CSX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +7.5%/yr +2.9%/yr — CSX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 22.5% 20.9% 69.8% NSC
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 48/100 35/100 21/100 CSX

Percentile Scorecard

CSXNSCFIP

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCSXNSCFIP
Valuation 10 #122 of 136 10 #123 of 136 1 #135 of 136
Growth 61 #48 of 122 46 #67 of 122 26 #91 of 122
Profitability 84 #20 of 119 67 #40 of 119 3 #116 of 119
Financial Health 30 #104 of 147 30 #103 of 147 1 #145 of 147
Shareholder Returns 57 #37 of 84 21 #67 of 84 75 #22 of 84
Overall 48 35 21
  • CSX ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • NSC ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • FIP ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCSXNSCFIPSPY
1 month +7.6%+4.7%-17.8% -1.0%
3 months -4.6%-5.9%-40.0% +2.9%
6 months +11.8%+3.2%-53.0% +6.4%
Year to date +40.1%+14.2%-44.9% +11.4%
1 year +42.9%+16.2%-54.2% +13.1%
3 years +71.1%+68.1%-18.8% +79.4%
3 years, per year +19.6%+18.9%-6.7% +21.5%
5 years +43.4%+15.1%— +67.7%
5 years, per year +7.5%+2.9%— +10.9%
10 years +402.9%+255.0%— +255.2%
10 years, per year +17.5%+13.5%— +13.5%

Risk

MeasureCSXNSCFIPSPY
Volatility, 1Y 22.5%20.9%69.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 20.8%20.2%71.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.370.182.02 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.910.78-0.78 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -30.5%-38.0%-77.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -4.6%-6.6%-60.6% -2.5%
52-week high $53.23$352.99$6.44 $779.14
52-week low $33.68$278.19$2.31 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCSXNSCFIP
P/E now vs peer median 26.2xmedian 16.0x 27.6xmedian 16.0x -0.5xmedian 16.0x
P/S now vs peer median 6.3xmedian 1.0x 5.7xmedian 1.0x 0.5xmedian 1.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 15.6xmedian 8.7x 16.2xmedian 8.7x -12.5xmedian 8.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 29.1xmedian 11.5x 45.0xmedian 11.5x -0.9xmedian 11.5x
P/B now vs peer median 6.5xmedian 1.2x 4.4xmedian 1.2x -0.6xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median 26.82median 0.82 3.07median 0.82 0.01median 0.82

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCSXNSCFIP
Revenue $14.95B $12.96B $659.21M
Operating income $5.44B $4.09B –
Net income $3.58B $2.68B -$468.91M
Free cash flow $3.21B $1.65B -$318.87M
EPS (diluted) $1.93 $11.92 $-5.13
Cash & equivalents $1.22B $1.60B $32.63M
Total debt $18.80B $67.41B $2.76B
Shares (diluted) 1.85B 225.20M 118.16M
Enterprise value $90.07B $69.50B $132.85M

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCSXNSCFIP
P/E 26.2x 27.6x -0.5x
P/FCF 29.1x 45.0x -0.9x
P/Operating cash flow 16.7x 19.6x -5.2x
P/S 6.3x 5.7x 0.5x
P/B 6.5x 4.4x -0.6x
P/Tangible book 6.5x 4.4x -0.5x
EV/EBITDA 15.6x 16.2x -12.5x
EV/EBIT 20.4x 21.8x -6.9x
EV/Revenue 7.4x 6.9x 4.6x
EV/FCF 34.5x 54.1x -9.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 19.8x 23.6x -52.7x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 26.82 3.07 0.01

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCSXNSCFIP
Revenue growth (1Y) 5.9% 6.0% 72.3%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 0.5% 1.7% 28.8%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) 20.4% -10.2% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -0.8% 8.2% –
Net income growth (1Y) 23.4% -9.4% -299.3%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -1.5% 8.7% -40.5%
EPS growth (1Y) 24.3% -9.6% -273.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 1.0% 9.0% -41.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 21.4% -11.0% 32.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 1.9% 4.6% -138.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 107.0% -21.5% -10.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 1.8% 13.0% -22.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCSXNSCFIP
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin 47.4% 42.5% -36.8%
Operating margin 36.4% 31.5% –
Pretax margin 31.6% 26.4% -66.7%
Net margin 24.0% 20.7% -91.9%
FCF margin 21.5% 12.7% -48.4%
Operating cash flow margin 37.5% 29.2% -8.7%
Return on equity 25.4% 16.3% –
Return on assets 8.0% 5.9% -8.2%
Return on invested capital 12.6% 9.7% -15.3%
Return on capital employed 13.4% 9.8% -10.0%
Asset turnover 0.3x 0.3x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.6x 1.4x 0.1x
Stock comp / revenue – – 3.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCSXNSCFIP
Debt / assets 41.6% 36.2% 48.1%
Debt / equity 1.3x 1.0x -5.3x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.4x 2.7x -11.3x
Debt / FCF 5.9x 10.1x -8.7x
Liabilities / assets 68.2% 63.6% 109.0%
Equity / assets 31.8% 36.4% -9.0%
Interest coverage 6.4x 5.2x –
Current ratio 0.8x 0.9x 0.3x
Quick ratio 0.7x 0.8x 0.0x
Cash ratio 0.4x 0.4x 0.0x
Altman Z-score 2.89 2.53 -0.49

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCSXNSCFIP
Dividend yield 1.1% 1.6% 4.7%
Net buyback yield 1.3% 0.0% –
Shareholder yield 2.3% 1.7% 4.7%
Payout ratio (earnings) 28.5% 45.2% -3.0%
Payout ratio (FCF) 31.8% 73.6% -4.4%
Dividend growth (1Y) 6.4% -0.4% 2.4%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 5.4% 0.2% 14.9%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCSXNSCFIP
Forward P/E 26.6xFY2026 27.3xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year $1.91FY2026 $12.07FY2026 $-3.36FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +18.6%FY2026 -3.4%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after +26.2% +24.5% –
Revenue, next fiscal year $14.43BFY2026 $13.99BFY2026 $682.91MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +2.4%FY2026 +14.9%FY2026 +35.9%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +13.9% +2.0% +17.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCSXNSCFIP
Held by institutions 79.3% 75.9% 87.9%
Institutions holding 1,995 1,862 176
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.0% +1.5% +4.6%
Institutions buying 999 750 86
Institutions selling 627 631 47
Buyers to sellers 1.59 1.19 1.83

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CSXNSCFIP
CSX 1.00 0.78 0.27
NSC 0.78 1.00 0.15
FIP 0.27 0.15 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CSX, NSC and FIP?

Csx (CSX) is the largest by market capitalisation: Csx (CSX) $94.84B, Norfolk Southern (NSC) $75.04B, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) $295.41M.

Which stock is cheaper, CSX, NSC and FIP?

Csx (CSX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Csx (CSX) 26.5x, Norfolk Southern (NSC) 28.0x, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) -0.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Csx (CSX) is cheapest (Csx (CSX) 26.6x, Norfolk Southern (NSC) 27.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Csx (CSX) +5.9%, Norfolk Southern (NSC) +6.0%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) +72.3%.

Which company is more profitable?

Csx (CSX) has the highest net margin (Csx (CSX) 24.0%, Norfolk Southern (NSC) 20.7%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) -91.9%). On return on invested capital, Csx (CSX) leads (Csx (CSX) 12.6%, Norfolk Southern (NSC) 9.7%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) -15.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Csx (CSX) returned the most: Csx (CSX) +42.9%, Norfolk Southern (NSC) +16.2%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) -54.2%. Over five years, Csx (CSX) compounded fastest (Csx (CSX) +7.5%/yr, Norfolk Southern (NSC) +2.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) has the highest dividend yield: Csx (CSX) 0.01%, Norfolk Southern (NSC) 0.02%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) 0.05%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Norfolk Southern (NSC) has been the steadiest (Csx (CSX) 22.5%, Norfolk Southern (NSC) 20.9%, FTAI Infrastructure (FIP) 69.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CSX, NSC and FIP?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Csx (CSX) leads on 8. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.