(The Associated Press circulated the following article on April 21.)
NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk Southern Corp. said Wednesday that its first-quarter profit fell 24 percent from results a year ago that included one-time gains. The results still beat Wall Street expectations.
The railroad company earned $158 million, or 40 cents per share, in the three months ended March 31. Analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call had estimated earnings of 30 cents per share.
In the first quarter of 2003, Norfolk Southern earned $209 million, or 54 cents per share, including gains from a required accounting change for the cost of removing railroad crossties and from discontinued operations resulting from the sale of a motor carrier subsidiary.
Excluding those items, its earnings were $85 million, or 22 cents per share, a year ago.
Railway operating revenue rose to a record $1.7 billion, up 8 percent from $1.56 billion a year earlier.
Coal revenues increased 12 percent, with export coal benefiting from the weakness of the U.S. dollar and higher ocean-going bulk rates.
General merchandise revenues rose 5 percent. Metals and construction revenues rose 10 percent as nearly all mills served by the railroad increased steel shipments.
Revenues in chemicals rose 6 percent because of increased shipments of petroleum and industrial intermediate products. Agricultural products set first-quarter records for volume and revenue, led by shipments of ethanol and fertilizer.
Railway operating expenses in the quarter rose 1 percent over the same period in 2003.
“Norfolk Southern’s exceptional first-quarter performance has provided a solid platform from which to build through the remainder of the year and reflects the strength of our higher-value transportation products and operating efficiency,” David R. Goode, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
The company reported its best operating ratio — a standard measure of railroad efficiency — since it integrated a portion of the Conrail system in 1999. For the quarter, the ratio improved to 79.6 percent from 85.2 percent a year earlier.
The company handled 109,000 more carloads in the quarter.
In midday trading on the New York Stock Exchange, Norfolk Southern shares were up 78 cents, or 3.6 percent, to $22.32.