Munger Mode rating: 3 out of 5 — Hold. Our own rating from the research report below, on business quality first: moat durability and management, with price separating the top three.
The verdict in one paragraph: CSX is a genuinely wonderful business — one of two railroads that matter east of the Mississippi, sitting on 20,000 route-miles of track that nobody will ever build again, now run by one of the best industrial operators of the past two decades. But the stock has run 77% in twelve months, from the $28 the company itself paid for buybacks in the second quarter of 2025 to nearly $50 today, and a good portion of that move is merger speculation — speculation we can address with unusual authority, since we were the ones who publicly declined to make it come true. At roughly 29 times trailing earnings and 24–25 times this year's likely earnings, you are paying a takeover premium for a company with no committed acquirer. We would happily hold what we owned. We would not put new money in at this price.
Recent filings analysed: 10-Q (2026-07-22), 8-K (2026-07-22), 8-K (2026-05-14), 10-Q (2026-04-22).
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