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UPDATE 1-CSX beats profit forecast, but stock down on outlook

(Adds details on results, forecasts, company comment)

LOS ANGELES, Jan 16 (Reuters) – CSX Corp on Wednesday reported quarterly profit that topped Wall Street’s view, but shares fell 2 percent after the No. 3 railroad operator forecast less robust revenue growth for 2019.

Cooling economies in Asia and Europe are roiling global stock markets and fueling worries that the U.S. economy will stumble. CSX, which forecast 2019 low single-digit revenue growth after posting 7.4 percent growth last year, is not seeing any trends that point to a significant slowdown in its business, executives said on a conference call.

Fourth-quarter net earnings at CSX fell to $843 million, or $1.01 per share, versus $4.14 billion, or $4.62 per share, last year when it booked a tax reform benefit resulting from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and a restructuring charge.

Analysts, on average, had expected a profit of 99 cents per share for the latest quarter, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

CSX said revenue increased 10 percent to $3.14 billion in the latest quarter, boosted by increased shipments and higher prices for transporting freight.

Its operating ratio, a measure of operating expenses as a percentage of revenue and a closely watched gauge of railroad performance, was 60.3 percent versus 60.7 percent in the year-earlier quarter. Railroads boost profit by lowering their operating ratio.

CSX said it expects its 2019 operating ratio to “outperform” its target of 60 percent and set a capital spending goal of $1.6 billion to $1.7 billion for this year.

The company’s directors authorized a new $5 billion share repurchase program on Tuesday.

Shares of CSX were down $1.33 at $64.05 in after-hours trading on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles Editing by Richard Chang and Matthew Lewis)

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