SMART Union
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Florida-based railroad operator CSX Corp. plans to cut 300 management workers, mostly through buyouts by the end of the year.
Most of the workers targeted are based at the company’s Jacksonville headquarters. Spokeswoman Melanie Cost tells The Florida Times-Union that layoffs are possible if fewer than 300 workers take the buyouts.
Read the complete story at Television Station WESH.
In a press release Oct. 14, CSX announced record third quarter profits. The railroad said that operating income increased 16 percent and operating ratio improved 220 points. Operating income came in at $976 million with an operating ratio of 69.7 percent. CSX also saw volume increases of seven percent.
Revenue increased to $3.2 billion, eight percent over the same period last year. Net earnings were announced at $509 million, up $0.51 per share from the net earnings of $455 million for the third quarter of 2013.
“As the economy continues to expand, the company’s record third-quarter results are built on the foundation of CSX’s network reach, sustainable growth opportunities, and the efforts of our 31,000 employees,” President, Chairman and CEO Michael J. Ward.
Operating ratio is a railroad’s operating expenses expressed as a percentage of operating revenue, and is considered by economists to be the basic measure of carrier profitability. The lower the operating ratio, the more efficient the railroad.
Kansas City Southern reports record quarterly revenues and carloads in a press release for the third quarter of 2014. The railroad recorded record revenues of $678 million, an increase of nine percent over the same quarter last year.
Operating income saw a 15 percent increase to $229 million over last year’s third quarter and operating ratio came in at 66.1 percent, a 1.7-point improvement. Net income for the quarter totaled $138 million or $1.25 per diluted share, a 17 percent increase.
The railroad credits the increases to a four percent increase in carloads. Automotive carloads increased by 28 percent, while carloads of industrial and consumer products saw a 13 percent increase.
Operating expenses came in at six percent higher than 2013 expenses. Operating expenses were $448 million for the quarter.
“KCS achieved record quarterly financial results as a result of the continued strength and diversity of our franchise,” President and CEO David L. Starling said. “An operating ratio of 66.1 percent was attained primarily due to volume growth, especially in the automotive and grain commodity groups, as well as system efficiency and cost controls.
“We are optimistic about the remainder of the year and reaffirm our updated 2014 goals outlined to investors in September. Looking ahead, we expect KCS’ long-term growth to be fueled by system-wide opportunities, which position KCS very well over the next several years.”
Canadian Pacific Railway reports record financial results for the third quarter. The company claims the third quarter results are the strongest in the company’s history.
Net income for the railway rose 26 percent to a record C$400 million or C$2.31 per diluted share compared to last year’s third quarter net income of C$324 million or C$1.84 per share. Revenue saw a nine percent increase to a record C$1.670 billion while operating expenses also rose four percent to C$1.049 billion. Operating income rose 19 percent to C$621 million, the highest that the railway has ever seen. Operating ratio fell to a record low of 62.8 percent, an improvement of 310 base points.
“The CP team delivered another quarter of impressive results,” CEO E. Hunter Harrison said. “Going forward, we will continue to execute on our plan of delivering safe, superior service to our customers, focusing on further efficiency and capacity initiatives and building on our solid foundation for growth.
“Despite recent volatility in commodity prices, we are confident in the strength of the franchise and are on track to finish the year with CP’s strongest quarter to date.”
Canadian National Railway reported increases in net income, operating income and revenues for the third quarter. Net income saw a 21 percent increase to C$853 million, up from last year’s C$705 million. Diluted earnings per share came in at C$1.04, also up from last year’s recorded C$0.84 per diluted share.
Operating income for the railway increased 19 percent to C$1,286 million. Revenues and car loadings set all-time quarterly records with revenues increasing 16 percent to C$3,118 million and car loadings increasing 11 percent to 1,475. Revenue ton-miles also grew by 13 percent. CN saw an improvement in operating ratio by one point to 58.8 percent.
“CN delivered outstanding third-quarter financial results while improving customer service levels and maintaining industry-leading operating efficiencies. Solid execution by our team of railroaders enabled us to accommodate the significantly higher freight volume generated by a record Canadian grain crop, strong energy markets and new business, particularly in intermodal and automotive,” President and CEO Claude Mongeau said. “The results underscore CN’s commitment to investing ahead of the curve in resources and rail infrastructure and playing our role as a true backbone of the economy.”
Norfolk Southern reported a 16 percent increase in net income of $559 million for the third quarter. The third quarter of 2013 only saw a net income of $482 million. Diluted earnings per share were also up 17 percent to $1.79 over last year’s $1.53 per diluted share.
Operating revenues saw an increase to $3.0 billion, up seven percent. Income from railway operations also saw an improvement to $998 million, up 18 percent. Operating ratio for the railroad saw an improvement by four percent to 67.0 percent.
“Norfolk Southern reported another record-setting quarter during which we achieved our best third-quarter results in revenues, operating income, net income, earnings per share and operating ratio,” CEO Wick Moorman said. “Higher traffic volumes along with continued gains in productivity drove these excellent results. We remain focused on ensuring we can support continued demand for freight rail transportation by hiring additional employees, investing in new equipment, and completing capacity projects in order to provide our customers with the freight rail service they expect today and in the future.”
Union Pacific railroad reports record financial results are at an all-time high for the third quarter in a press release Oct. 23. Net income came in at a $1.4 billion or $1.53 per diluted share, a 23 percent improvement. Last year’s results for the same quarter were at $1.15 billion or $1.24 per diluted share.
Operating revenues increased 11 percent to $6.2 billion versus the $5.6 billion the railroad saw in the same quarter last year. Operating income also saw an increase to $2.3 billion, up 19 percent over last year’s numbers. Operating ratio saw an improvement of 2.5 points to 62.3 percent.
The railroad attributes these new records to a seven percent increase in revenue carloads, a coal volumes increase and volume incre
ases in agricultural products, industrial products, intermodal, automotive and chemicals.
“Union Pacific achieved record quarterly financial results, leveraging the strengths of our diverse franchise to handle strong volume growth,” CEO Jack Koraleski said. “As we continue to focus on improving our service, we are encouraged by the accomplishments we achieved in the quarter, including a two and a half point improvement in our operating ratio to a record 62.3 percent.”
Canadian Pacific Railway says it has ended talks with U.S. counterpart CSX about a possible combination and plans no more discussions.
The railway operator did not say why it ended talks, but it did note in a brief statement that regulatory concerns appear to be a major deterrent for railroads considering combinations.
Read the complete story at the Associated Press.
Shares of No. 3 U.S. railroad CSX Corp rose nearly 10 percent on Monday (Oct. 13) following a report of a rebuffed takeover bid by Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd (CP.TO), but analysts said any such deal would face significant regulatory and other hurdles.
“You could make the argument that there is not much overlap between the two networks and between their businesses,” said Jim Corridore, head of industrials equity research at Standard & Poor’s. “But they would face significant hurdles of getting a merger passed by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB).”
Read the complete story at Reuters.
Canadian Pacific Railway has approached and been rebuffed by CSX about a merger that could bring together two of the world’s largest railroad operators, according to a published report Sunday afternoon on the website of The Wall Street Journal.
If a merger were negotiated, it could rally a volatile Wall Street this week and eclipse in size Berkshire Hathaway’s $26 billion purchase of Burlington Northern Santa Fe in 2010.
Read the complete story from USA Today.
In the days after a train carrying highly flammable oil to Yorktown plunged off its tracks in downtown Lynchburg, dumping 15 cars into the James River and sparking a fire so intense that emergency crews had to simply let it burn itself out, federal track inspectors found more than 20 significant defects on the rail line through that city.
On top of that, six weeks before the derailment, federal inspectors found 14 faults on the line in Lynchburg, according to Federal Railroad Administration records obtained by the Daily Press through a Freedom of Information Act request.
Read the complete story at the Daily Press.
BILLINGS, Mont. — U.S. railroads forced to turn over details of their volatile crude oil shipments are asking states to sign agreements not to disclose the information. But some states are refusing, saying Thursday that the information shouldn’t be kept from the public.
Federal officials last month ordered railroads to make the disclosures after a string of fiery tank-car accidents in North Dakota, Alabama, Virginia and Quebec, where 47 people died when a runaway oil train exploded in the town of Lac-Megantic.
The disclosures due midnight Saturday include route details, volumes of oil carried and emergency-response information for trains hauling 1 million gallons or more of crude. That’s the equivalent of 35 tank cars.
Read the complete story at The Washington Post.
A CSX Corp. train carrying crude oil derailed and burst into flames in downtown Lynchburg, Va., on Wednesday (April 30), spilling oil into the James River and forcing hundreds to evacuate.
CSX said 15 cars on a train traveling from Chicago to Virginia derailed at 2:30 p.m. EDT. Fire erupted on three cars, the company said. Photos and video from the scene showed high flames and a plume of black smoke. It was the second oil-train accident this year for CSX.
Read the complete story at Reuters.
CSX reported to the public its first quarter 2014 earnings and dividend increase. The railroad announced net earnings of $398 million or $.040 per share. This is a decrease from last year’s first quarter reports of $462 million or $0.45 per share.
However, revenue for the quarter grew two percent to $3 billion on volume increases of three percent, with strength in merchandise markets and intermodal offsetting the declines in coal shipments.
Operating income for the railroad declined 16 percent to $739 million, while operating ratio increased 520 basis points to 75.5 percent, due to harsh weather. CSX estimates that weather interruptions in service increased expenses by around six cents per share. Optimistically, CSX expects modest full-year earnings growth in 2014.
Operating ratio is a railroad’s operating expenses expressed as a percentage of operating revenue, and is considered by economists to be the basic measure of carrier profitability. The lower the operating ratio, the more efficient the railroad.
“The company is indebted to the dedicated men and women of CSX who worked tirelessly through one of the worst winters on record to keep the network running as fluidly as possible,” Chairman, President and CEO Michael J. Ward. “Thanks to the hard work of our employees, service levels are gradually recovering, and we are capitalizing on an economy that continues to show positive momentum.”
In an announcement made April 16, Kansas City Southern reported record first quarter revenues and carloads. Revenues for the first quarter were $607 million, an increase of 10 percent more than last year’s first quarter. The railroad also saw a four percent increase in carloads for the quarter.
Operating income came in at $160 million, but excluding lease termination costs, adjusted operating income came in at $190 million, a 17 percent increase over last year’s first quarter. The railroad saw an operating ratio of 73.7 percent or an adjusted operating ratio of 68.7 percent. This is a 1.8-point improvement over last year.
Diluted earning per share came in at $0.85 or adjusted diluted earnings per share were at $1.05 for the first quarter of 2014. This is an 18 percent increase over the first quarter of 2013. Net income came in at $94 million.
“We are pleased with how our company performed during the first quarter,” President and CEO David L. Starling said. “All six commodity groups reported year-over-year revenue gains led by Agriculture and Minerals, which increased 40 percent over the prior year. Later in the first quarter, we also recorded higher than expected utility coal volumes and revenues as a result of higher natural gas prices, which made coal a more competitive option benefitting certain plants we serve.
“While it is still early in the second quarter, KCS business levels have improved in April. The indication that our core business appears to be gaining strength provides us with positive momentum towards achieving the 2014 goals we outlined to investors in January.”
Union Pacific reported a record first quarter in an earnings announcement made April 17. The railroad reports a net income of $1.1 billion or $2.38 per diluted share, up from the first quarter 2013 reports of $957 million or $2.03 per diluted share. Taht is a 17 percent increase over last year.
Operating revenues totaled $5.6 billion, up seven percent over last year’s first quarter operating revenue of $5.3 billion. Business volumes, which are measured by total revenue carloads, increased five percent. Agricultural products, industrial products, coal, intermodal and automotive all increased in volume for the quarter. Freight revenue increased a total of six percent for the quarter.
Operating ratio for the railroad was at 67.1 percent, a first quarter record and 2.0 points better than the first quarter of 2013. Operating income was up 14 percent to $1.85 billion.
“As we look forward, we’re watching the economy very closely, as well as the potential impacts of weather, particularly on our coal and grain business,” Jack Koraleski, CEO, said. “There’s still a lot of year ahead of us, but we are seeing signs of gradual economic improvement, and we’re encouraged by the opportunities it presents. With the power and potential of the Union Pacific franchise, we’ll leverage these opportunities to drive record financial performance and shareholder returns this year and in the years to come.
“We’re proud of the efforts of the men and women of Union Pacific, who worked tirelessly to serve our customers despite these weather challenges and helped us achieve such a solid start to the year.”
In an announcement made early April 22, Canadian Pacific said the first quarter of 2014 had the best first quarter financial results in the company’s history.
The company saw a 16 percent increase in year-over-year improvement in earnings per share with a reported C$254 million or C$1.44 per diluted share. The first quarter of 2013 only reported C$217 million or C$1.24 per share.
Total revenues for the railway came in at C$1,509 million, an increase of one percent over last year’s first quarter. Operating expenses saw a four percent decrease to C$1,086 million. While operating income saw a 17 percent increase to C$423 million. Operating ratio also saw an improvement to 72.0 percent, a 380 basis point improvement.
“CP delivered solid results in a period that was severely impacted by extraordinary cold and severe winter weather conditions,” CEO E. Hunter Harrison said. “In the face of such difficult operating conditions, I am particularly proud of the women and men of CP who remained on the job 24/7, to keep the railway operating.
“Despite a slow start to the year and the reduced capacity which limited our ability to meet strong customer demand, we still have the utmost confidence in our ability to achieve our financial targets for 2014.”
Canadian National railway reported increases in revenues in a teleconference held late April 22. The railway reports a net income for the first quarter 2014 of C$623 million or C$0.75 per diluted share. Net income for the same quarter of 2013 was only at C$555 million or C$0.65 per diluted share.
The company saw a five percent increase of operating income to C$820 million. Revenues saw a nine percent increase to C$2,693 million, while revenue ton-miles also saw a five percent increase and carloads saw a one percent increase.
Operating ratio for the railway deteriorated 1.2 points to 69.6 percent. The previous year’s quarter reported operating ratio at 68.4 percent. Free cash flow for the first quarter of this year came in at C$494 million, quite an increase over last year’s C$151 million.
“CN delivered solid first quarter results thanks to a dedicated team of railroaders who labored long and hard to keep us rolling through the harshest winter in decades,” CEO and President Claude Mongeau said. “The winter of a lifetime took its toll on network capacity and affected
all of our customers, but I’m pleased that CN’s recovery is now well underway, with key safety, operating and service metrics returning to pre-winter levels.
“Witch continued focus on supply chain collaboration and solid execution, CN is reaffirming its 2014 financial outlook and increasing its capital envelope to C$2.25 billion in support of its commitment to growth, efficiency and safety.”
Norfolk Southern reported its first quarter financial results April 23. Net income for the railroad saw a decrease to $368 million or $1.17 per diluted share for the first quarter 2014. Net income for the same quarter of 2013 was at $450 million or $1.41 per diluted share. Although, $60 million or $0.19 per diluted share of the $450 million was due to a gain from a land sale.
Operating revenues for the railroad totaled $2.7 billion, a two percent decrease from first quarter 2013. Shipment volumes also decreased by one percent during the quarter. Income from railway operations came in at $667 million, three percent lower than last year.
Operating expenses for the first quarter came in at $2 billion, a one percent decrease from the same quarter of 2013. Operating ratio for the railroad was 75.2 percent versus 74.8 percent for the same period last year.
“Following the extreme winter weather across the U.S. rail network which impacted first-quarter results, we are seeing a rebound in shipments across all of our business,” said Wick Moorman, CEO. “Our people responded admirably to meet the challenges of the harsh conditions, and we remain focused on delivering superior service to our customers.”
CSX Corporation announced its fourth quarter and full-year earnings for 2013 Jan. 15. The railroad reported net earnings of $426 million or $0.42 per share for the fourth quarter. These earnings were down from the same quarter in 2012, with earnings of $449 million or $0.44 per share. Earnings dropped $37 million from the third quarter of 2013.
The railroad also reported that revenue for the quarter increased by five percent to $3 billion. The increase was due to merchandise and intermodal markets.
“Supported by the strength of an expanding economy, we delivered six percent volume growth in the quarter, despite another sharp decline in coal,” said Michael J. Ward, who acts as chairman, president and chief executive officer for the company.
Annual net earnings for 2013 came in at $1.83 per share, up from 2012’s $1.79 per share. Revenue increased for the year by two percent to $12 billion, a record for the company. Operating income came in at $3.5 billion and the operating ratio increased to 71.1 percent for the year.
Operating ratio is a railroad’s operating expenses expressed as a percentage of operating revenue, and is considered by economists to be the basic measure of carrier profitability. The lower the operating ratio, the more efficient the railroad.
Norfolk Southern published its fourth quarter and full-year earnings for 2013 January 22. The railroad reports a fourth quarter net income of $513 million or $1.64 per diluted share. Net income was 24 percent higher than recorded earnings for the same quarter 2012. Fourth quarter earnings were also up $31 million over third quarter earnings for the same year.
NS reported that the operating ratio improved five percent to 69.4 percent for the quarter. Operating revenues for the railroad totaled $2.9 billion, up seven percent from the same quarter last year. Income from railway operations was up 23 percent at $881 million.
For the year 2013, operating revenues for the railway reached $11.2 billion, up two percent over 2012. Income from railway operations came in at $3.3 billion for the year, four percent higher than last year. Net income rose nine percent higher than the previous year at $1.9 billion. Diluted earnings per share also saw an improvement of 12 percent at $6.04. Overall, the railway’s operating ratio improved by one percent to 71.0 percent for the year.
“Norfolk Southern’s team of safety and service-oriented employees drove our record-setting fourth quarter results through increased productivity, efficient network operations, and continued revenue gains,” Wick Moorman, NS CEO, said. “In 2014, we plan to invest $2.2 billion, a 12 percent increase over 2013, to maintain safe railway operations, purchase locomotives and freight cars, and support growth and productivity initiatives.
Union Pacific announced their full-year earnings for 2013 as well as their fourth quarter earnings. The company stated that the fourth quarter of 2013 was their best quarter yet with records set.
The railroad reported a net income of $1.2 billion or $2.55 per diluted share for the fourth quarter, a 16 percent increase over last year. Last year’s results for the same quarter were only $1 billion or $2.19 per diluted share.
Operating revenue saw an increase of seven percent to more than $5.6 billion. The same quarter last year only saw an operating revenue of $5.25 billion. Operating income was up 14 percent, totaling $1.97 billion. UP’s operating ratio was a fourth quarter record at 65.0 percent.
“For the first time in six quarters, we reported overall volume growth, despite significantly weaker coal shipments,” said CEO Jack Koraleski. “The fourth quarter wrapped up another tremendous year for Union Pacific, with our overall financial performances exceeding all previous milestones.”
For 2013, UP reported a net income of $4.4 billion or $9.42 diluted share, up from 2012’s reported net income of $3.9 billion or $8.27 per diluted share. Operating revenue saw a record $21.96 billion for the railroad in 2013. Operating income also saw an increase of 10 percent, coming in at more than $7.4 billion. The 2013 operating ratio for the railroad was also a new record, coming in at 66.1 percent.
“As we look at 2014, we see signs that the economy is slowly strengthening. We’re well-positioned for economic growth and are confident in our ability to deliver on our customer’s growing transportation needs,” Koraleski said. “We’ll continue our unrelenting focus on both safety and service to our customers. We strongly believe in the power and potential of the Union Pacific franchise to drive even greater financial performance and shareholder returns in the years to come.”
Kansas City Southern Lines reports record fourth quarter revenues and record full-year 2013 revenues. The railroad saw an eight percent increase in revenue to $616 million over the fourth quarter of 2012.
Net income totaled $114 million or $1.03 diluted earnings per share for the quarter, a 12 percent increase over the same quarter last year. They also saw a two percent increase in carloads for the fourth quarter.
KCS’s operating income also saw an increase to $196 million for the quarter, a full 13 percent higher than 2012. Operating ratio came in at 68.1 percent for the railroad. Operating expenses also increased by six percent to $420 million for the quarter.
Full year 2013 revenue came in at a record $2.4 billion, up six percent over 2012. Carloads for the year increased two percent to 2.2 million. Operating income for the year is being reported at $739 million, an increase of 10 percent over 2012. The operating ratio for KCS was 68.8 percent for the year, a 1.1 point improvement over 2012.
“The year 2013 proved to be another very good year for Kansas City Southern,” said President and CEO David L. Starling. “2013 marks the fourth consecutive year KCS has recorded a double-digit percentage increase in its adjusted earnings per share. We expect to maintain our excellent growth momentum in 2014 and beyond.”
Canadian Pacific Railway, Canada’s second-largest railroad, said fourth-quarter profit more than quintupled. Net income surged to C$82 million ($74 million), or 47 cents a share, from C$15 million, or 8 cents, a year earlier, and earnings per share for 2014 will rise 30 percent or more from last year, CP said.
Since taking over in June 2012, Harrison has cut jobs and shut rail yards to bolster profit and close the operations gap with larger rival Canadian National Railway, his former employer. CP reported record operating ratio, a costs-to-revenue measure of efficiency, for the last quarter and said it expects more improvement this year. The railroad’s operating ratio improved to a record 65.9 percent in the quarter from 74.8 percent a year earlier, and the company said it’s targeting 65 percent or lower this year.
“This was a solid quarter, with decent operating numbers,” Jason Sei
dl, a Cowen & Co. analyst in New York who rates the shares market perform, said in a telephone interview. “The guidance is for a minimum of 30 percent growth. This year they did much better than their original guidance, so if they do that again this year, they will be well above the consensus.”
Canadian Pacific stock shares jumped 4.3 percent to C$165 at the close in Toronto, the biggest single-day increase since Oct. 23. The stock has gained 2.7 percent this year.
The 69-year-old Harrison, who came out of retirement to become Canadian Pacific’s CEO, insisted he still plans to lead the company for another two years before handing the reins to Chief Operating Officer Keith Creel.
Canadian National Railway Co. Jan. 30 said its fourth-quarter earnings increased to C$635 ($568 million), or 76 Canadian cents a share, up from C$610 million, or 71 Canadian cents, a year earlier, helped by higher petroleum product volumes and a stronger U.S. dollar. The company also boosted its quarterly cash dividend by 16 percent and reaffirmed its guidance for 2014.
The railroad, based in Montreal, was helped by strong energy markets. Revenue from the transport of petroleum and chemicals jumped 22% in the fourth quarter, while revenues from metals and minerals and forestry products also made double-digit gains.
Revenue increased 8 percent to C$2.745 billion and operating expenses rose 5 percent to C$967 million. The company’s operating ratio rose to 64.8 percent from 63.6 percent. The operating ratio is the percentage of operating revenue consumed by operating costs, so an increase indicates a decline.
“Key operating and service metrics remained solid, and we continued to drive incremental improvement in our broad safety record,” Chief Executive Claude Mongeau said in a statement.
“CN sees good opportunities in 2014 in a number of markets, including intermodal, oil-and-gas-related commodities, Canadian and U.S. grain, and commodities related to the recovery in the U.S. housing market,” Mr. Mongeau said.