RXO (NYSE:RXO) and CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) Critical Survey

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) and RXO (NYSE:RXO) are both industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and profitability.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares CSX and RXO”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CSX	$14.09 billion	6.64	$2.89 billion	$1.93	26.28
RXO	$5.74 billion	0.80	-$100.00 million	($0.51)	-54.44

CSX has higher revenue and earnings than RXO. RXO is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than CSX, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares CSX and RXO’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CSX	23.97%	25.94%	8.06%
RXO	-1.35%	-0.07%	-0.03%

Risk and Volatility

CSX has a beta of 1.12, suggesting that its stock price is 12% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, RXO has a beta of 1.96, suggesting that its stock price is 96% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

73.6% of CSX shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.7% of RXO shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of CSX shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of RXO shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for CSX and RXO, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CSX	1	7	18	0	2.65
RXO	1	15	3	1	2.20

CSX currently has a consensus price target of $52.20, suggesting a potential upside of 2.92%. RXO has a consensus price target of $27.32, suggesting a potential downside of 1.60%. Given CSX’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe CSX is more favorable than RXO.

Summary

CSX beats RXO on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About CSX

CSX Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides rail-based freight transportation services. The company offers rail services; and transportation of intermodal containers and trailers, as well as other transportation services, such as rail-to-truck transfers and bulk commodity operations. It also transports chemicals, agricultural and food products, minerals, automotive, forest products, fertilizers, and metals and equipment; and coal, coke, and iron ore to electricity-generating power plants, steel manufacturers, and industrial plants, as well as exports coal to deep-water port facilities. In addition, the company provides intermodal services through a network of approximately 30 terminals transporting manufactured consumer goods in containers; and drayage services, including the pickup and delivery of intermodal shipments. It serves the automotive industry with distribution centers and storage locations, as well as connects non-rail served customers through transferring products, such as plastics and ethanol from rail to trucks. The company operates approximately 20,000 route mile rail network, which serves various population centers in 26 states east of the Mississippi River, the District of Columbia, and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec, as well as owns and leases approximately 3,500 locomotives. It serves production and distribution facilities through track connections. CSX Corporation was incorporated in 1978 and is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.

About RXO

RXO, Inc. provides full truckload freight transportation brokering services. It also offers brokered services for managed transportation, last mile, and freight forwarding. The company was incorporated in 2022 and is based in Charlotte, North Carolina.