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Investing.com – CSX stock (NASDAQ:CSX) recouped some of the losses but was still down 2% Friday as traders chose to focus on the surge in the railroad operator’s fourth-quarter expenses, ignoring that it beat estimates for both revenue and profit.
Expenses of $2.1 billion increased 28% year-on-year owing to higher staff compensation, higher utilization of the locomotive fleet and terminal costs.
The company also recorded $48 million in expenses incurred for premature retirement of debt that was due 2023. Higher fuel prices hurt, too.
CSX carried higher volumes in the quarter as it rode the boom in commodities including minerals, metals, coal, fertilizer and forest products. Demand for its transportation services remained high in a period of crunch as logistics bottlenecks persisted. That helped push quarterly revenue up 21%, to $3.42 billion.
Net profit for the quarter rose 23%, to $934 million, while profit per share of 42 cents was 27% higher on the back of share buybacks during the year.
The company said it is targeting full-year volume growth in excess of GDP growth as volume momentum builds sequentially through the year.
CSX pegged its capex for the year at around $2 billion.
