A freight railroad that moves merchandise, coal, and containerized consumer goods by rail, truck, and intermodal terminals across the eastern United States and parts of Canada. Its trucking arm, Quality Carriers, is the largest bulk liquid chemicals hauler in North America. CSX was born in 1980 from the merger of the Chessie System and Seaboard Coast Line Industries; the name was a temporary shorthand in legal filings that simply stuck. The "C" and "S" stand for Chessie and Seaboard, and the "X" was a placeholder that became permanent.
CSX Q2 2026 revenue rose 10% to $3.9B and operating margin expanded 240 bps to 38.3%
The coal drag that defined 2025 reversed this quarter. rose 10% to $3.9B and rose 26.5% to $0.43 as intermodal revenue grew 26% and expanded 240 to 38.3%, driven by volume growth and pricing gains after expenses fell . The network recovery is holding, but fuel costs are climbing again.
Key takeaways
rose 10% to $3.9B, driven by higher revenue, 6% volume growth, and pricing gains across merchandise, intermodal, and coal — the first double-digit quarterly increase since Q2 2022.
Intermodal rose 26% on 9% volume growth from domestic wins and new service offerings in a tightening truck market, leading performance after a 2% revenue-per-unit decline in 2025.
rose 17% to $1.5B as expenses grew 6%, outpaced by ; non-fuel costs fell $39M while fuel expense rose $177M on a 74% increase in locomotive fuel prices.
Section summaries
Management's Discussion and Analysis
CSX Q2 2026 revenue rose 10% to $3.9B on higher fuel surcharges, volume, and pricing; operating margin expanded 240 bps to 38.3%.
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Total increased 10% to $3.9 billion, driven by higher revenue, volume growth of 6%, and pricing gains across , , and .
before dividends reached $1.6B in the first half, up from $444M a year earlier, helped by lower property additions after the rebuild and higher cash earnings.
Merchandise grew 8% on 4% higher volume, led by metals and equipment (up 14%), minerals (up 11%), and chemicals (up 10%); automotive volume dipped 1% from a customer re-tooling outage.
Planned 2026 capital investments remain below $2.4B, with liquidity supported by $1.4B in cash and short-term investments and an undrawn $1.2B .
What changed
Q2 2026 coal per unit and volume: after the 15% annual 2025 drop and Q1 2026 partial recovery, Q2 2026 revenue rose with pricing gains across coal, reversing the export-weakness drag flagged through 2025.
rebuild spend: the $470M 2025 outlay was behind the prior-year comparison; Q2 2026 first-half before dividends of $1.6B reflects lower property additions after that rebuild, settling the flagged 2026 cash-flow question.
Operating metrics: after Q1 2026 showed train velocity up 7% and dwell down 7% (first update since Q1 2024), this filing does not restate them but the and expense control are consistent with network recovery holding.
Intermodal per unit: after the 2% 2025 decline on 4% volume growth, Q2 2026 intermodal revenue rose 26% on 9% volume, suggesting the per-unit trend improved alongside volume.
New CEO Stephen F. Angel, appointed September 2025, is presiding over the first quarter of broad growth and since before the 2025 impairments and coal decline.
What to watch
Q3 2026 intermodal per unit to confirm the 26% Q2 gain holds as domestic wins and truck-market tightness develop
Locomotive fuel expense trajectory after the $177M Q2 increase from 74% higher fuel prices and its effect on
Continued operating metric trend (train velocity, dwell) after Q1 2026 improvement to confirm network recovery sustains
Remaining 2026 capital spend against the below-$2.4B plan as Blue Ridge rebuild costs phase out
grew 8% on 4% higher volume, led by chemicals (up 10%), metals and equipment (up 14%), and minerals (up 11%); automotive volume dipped 1% due to a customer re-tooling outage.
surged 26% on 9% volume growth, fueled by domestic wins, new service offerings, and a tightening truck market; international shipments were flat.
rose 17% to $1.5 billion as expense growth of 6% was outpaced by ; fuel expense jumped $177 million on a 74% increase in locomotive fuel prices, while non-fuel costs fell $39 million.
before dividends reached $1.6 billion in the first half, up from $444 million, helped by lower property additions after the rebuild and higher cash earnings.
Planned 2026 capital investments are expected to be below $2.4 billion, with liquidity supported by $1.4 billion in cash and short-term investments and an undrawn $1.2 billion .
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
There have been no material changes in market risk from the information provided under Part II, Item 7A (Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk) of CSX's most recent annual report on Form 10-K.
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There have been no material changes in market risk from the information provided under Part II, Item 7A (Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk) of CSX's most recent annual report on Form 10-K.
Item 103 of SEC Regulation S-K requires disclosure of certain environmental matters when a governmental authority is a party to the proceedings and such proceedings involve potential monetary sanctions that the Company reasonably believes will exceed a specified threshold. Pursu…
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Item 103 of SEC Regulation S-K requires disclosure of certain environmental matters when a governmental authority is a party to the proceedings and such proceedings involve potential monetary sanctions that the Company reasonably believes will exceed a specified threshold. Pursuant to SEC amendments to this Item, the Company will be using a threshold of $1 million for such proceedings. For further details, refer to Note 5, Commitments and Contingencies, of this quarterly report on Form 10-Q. Also refer to Part I, Item 3, Legal Proceedings in CSX's most recent annual report on Form 10-K.
For information regarding factors that could affect the Company's results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, see the risk factors discussed under Part I, Item 1A (Risk Factors) of CSX's most recent annual report on Form 10-K. See also Part I, Item 2 (Forward-Looki…
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For information regarding factors that could affect the Company's results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, see the risk factors discussed under Part I, Item 1A (Risk Factors) of CSX's most recent annual report on Form 10-K. See also Part I, Item 2 (Forward-Looking Statements) of this quarterly report on Form 10-Q.