International Paper vs CSX Corporation
Side-by-side comparison of AI visibility scores, market position, and capabilities
Memphis corrugated packaging and containerboard (NYSE: IP) ~$23B combined revenue; DS Smith $7.2B acquisition creates 65,000+ employee global packaging leader with $514M+ synergies competing with Smurfit WestRock.
About
International Paper Company is a Memphis, Tennessee-based global packaging and pulp company — publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: IP) as an S&P 500 Materials component — manufacturing corrugated packaging, containerboard, and fiber-based packaging solutions for industrial and consumer goods companies through approximately 65,000 employees in 30+ countries following the completion of its $7.2 billion acquisition of DS Smith plc (UK-listed packaging company) in 2024. The DS Smith acquisition — completed through an all-share transaction in which legacy International Paper shareholders own 65.9% and former DS Smith shareholders own 34.1% of the combined company — creates a global sustainable packaging leader with combined capacity to serve customer supply chains from North America to Europe to emerging markets, with expected synergies of at least $514 million from manufacturing network optimization, procurement consolidation, and shared commercial capabilities. CEO Andy Silvernail leads the combined company's integration. International Paper's portfolio is primarily containerboard (the linerboard and medium used to manufacture corrugated shipping boxes) and corrugated packaging — the industry's largest-volume product, required by every e-commerce, retail, food and beverage, and industrial goods company to ship and protect products through supply chains. DS Smith's complementary European containerboard and corrugated operations provide geographic diversification and serve European CPG, e-commerce, and manufacturing customers that could not be reached efficiently from IP's North American manufacturing network.
Jacksonville Class I eastern US railroad (NASDAQ: CSX) ~$14.5B 2024 revenue; PSR operating model, new CEO Steve Angel (Sept 2025, ex-Linde), 20,000 route miles competing with Norfolk Southern for eastern freight.
About
CSX Corporation is a Jacksonville, Florida-based Class I freight railroad — publicly traded on NASDAQ (NASDAQ: CSX) as an S&P 500 Industrials component — operating approximately 20,000 route miles across 26 states in the eastern United States and two Canadian provinces, connecting industrial facilities, ports, agricultural markets, intermodal terminals, and power plants through approximately 22,000 employees. CSX transports merchandise freight (chemicals, automotive, agricultural products, metals, food), intermodal containers and trailers, and coal (utility coal to power plants and export coal to terminals) across the densest rail network in the eastern US, including critical connections to the Port of Baltimore, Port of Savannah, and Port of Norfolk. In fiscal year 2024, CSX reported revenue of approximately $14.5 billion, with the Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR) operating model maintaining operating ratio efficiency while managing volume volatility from coal headwinds and intermodal competition. A defining leadership development is the September 28, 2025 appointment of Steve Angel as President and CEO, succeeding Joe Hinrichs — Angel brings two decades of operational experience from Linde plc (where he served as CEO from 2018 to 2022 and oversaw the $90B Linde-Praxair merger) and 22 years at General Electric working directly with locomotive and rail operations, bringing a manufacturing and industrial operations discipline to CSX's continued operational improvement agenda.
AI Visibility Head-to-Head
Key Details
Also Compare
Track AI Visibility in Real Time
Monitor how your brand performs across ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude, and Grok daily.