NORFOLK, Va. — U.S. railway operator Norfolk Southern Corp. on Wednesday posted a jump in first-quarter profits, helped by cost cutting amid a drop in shipping volumes, a wire service reported.
Norfolk, which runs freight hauler Norfolk Southern Railway as well as transport and telecom businesses, said in a news release that quarterly income from continuing operations was $86 million, or 22 cents a share, up from $61 million, or 16 cents, before a gain a year earlier.
Wall Street had expected Norfolk to earn between 20 cents and 26 cents a share, with a consensus forecast of 23 cents, according to nine analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial/First Call.
Rail revenues were 1.5 billion, down 2.7 percent.
Norfolk Southern shares, which have given up some gains from a rally in rail stocks fueled by optimism about the U.S. economy, closed down 11 cents on Tuesday at $22.98. Norfolk is up about 26 percent this year while the Dow Jones U.S. Total Market Index has fallen about 4 percent.