Kansas City Southern posts record Q2 results

Kansas City Southern today reported record second-quarter results that topped Wall Street estimates for quarterly profit.

KCS posted record revenue of $682 million, up 4 percent, and record operating income of $246 million, up 3 percent, compared with second-quarter 2017.

Diluted earnings per share were $1.45, up 14 percent, and record adjusted diluted earnings per share of $1.54, up 16 percent compared with the same period a year ago, KCS officials said in a press release.

Second-quarter net income rose 11 percent to $149 million from $134 million a year ago.

KCS posted operating expenses of $437 million, a 5 percent increase from a year ago, and an operating ratio of 64 percent, or 0.5 points higher than in second-quarter 2017.

Overall, carload volume in the quarter ticked up 1 percent from a year ago.

Revenue increased in five commodity groups, led by a 17 percent increase in automotive and a 14 percent increase in chemicals and petroleum. Intermodal and industrial and consumer categories both grew by 3 percent; agricultural and minerals climbed 1 percent.

However, those increases were partially offset by a 20 percent decline in energy, driven primarily by a reduction in utility coal volume due to the closing of a Texas utility in January.

"Supported by the strength and diversity of our franchise, KCS achieved record quarterly financial results," said President and Chief Executive Officer Patrick Ottensmeyer. "We persevered through volume headwinds from utility coal and a challenging FX environment impacting Mexico international intermodal business, to deliver top-line growth from five of six business units, record franchise cross-border revenue and record adjusted diluted earnings per share."

Moving into the second half of 2018 and into 2019, the company expects "volume growth to accelerate, benefiting from a strong economy, network capacity investments and commercial opportunities that are unique to the KCS franchise," he said.