Union Pacific picks up speed in Q2

The Class I railway posted a net income of $1.51 billion on revenues of $5.67 billion.    Union Pacific’s net income in the second quarter of 2018 increased 29.2 percent year-over-year to $1.51 billion as the company benefited from higher revenues and volumes amid a lower effective tax rate.
   “Network performance improved significantly coming out of the first quarter, but a tunnel outage and train-crew shortages created a headwind in June,” UP Chairman, President and CEO Lance Fritz said.
   The Class I railway’s earnings and revenues surpassed analyst expectations for the quarter, with basic and diluted earnings per share totaling $1.98 and revenues rising 8 percent year-over-year to $5.67 billion.
   On average, analysts polled by Thompson Reuters expected Union Pacific to post earnings of $1.95 per share and revenues of $5.65 billion.
   The company’s effective tax rate for the quarter totaled 22.1 percent, compared to 37.5 percent for the second quarter of 2017. Carloads rose 4 percent from last year’s second quarter as volume increases in industrial and premium more than offset declines in agricultural products and energy.
   Union Pacific had averaged 42,114 employees during the quarter, down 0.3 percent from last year’s second quarter average.
   Based out of Omaha, Neb., Union Pacific’s network covers 23 states across the western two-thirds of the United States.
   Union Pacific was the third Class I railway to post its second-quarter results, with CSX posting net earnings of $877 million, up 72 percent year-over-year, and Canadian Pacific recording a net income of C$436 million, down 9.2 percent from last year’s second quarter.