(The Associated Press circulated the following on January 24.)
NEW YORK — Shares of major railroads finished higher Thursday, as investors cheered recent strong earnings reports and indications that demand is improving in the first quarter.
Union Pacific Corp. said Thursday that its fourth-quarter profit rose 1 percent, as operational improvements and price increases countered flat demand and surging fuel costs.
CSX Corp. and Norfolk Southern Corp. both posted higher fourth-quarter profits Tuesday despite high fuel costs.
Bear Stearns analyst Edward Wolfe said rail volumes posted a “solid improvement” last week – rising 3.5 percent from a year earlier. Carloads grew a modest 1.4 percent in the prior week, Wolfe said, and plunged 7.1 percent in the first week of the year.
Wolfe said most of the growth last week was due to increased demand for auto carloads.
Here’s how major rails finished Thursday:
Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. rose $2.43, or 3 percent, to $82.10.
CSX Corp. added $1.32, or 2.9 percent, to $46.83.
Norfolk Southern advanced $1.33, or 2.7 percent, to $50.74.
Union Pacific gained $3.95, or 3.4 percent, to $120.96.
Kansas City Southern moved up $1.97, or 6 percent, to $34.57.
Canadian National Railway Co. rose $1.58, or 3.4 percent, to $48.08.
Canadian Pacific Ltd. added $1.14 to $63.44.