FORT WORTH, Texas — Railway operator Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. on Tuesday said first-quarter profits rose as shipping volumes remain pressured by a weak economy, reports a wire service.
The Fort Worth, Texas-based transport giant, the No. 2 U.S. railroad behind Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP – news), said profits were 45 cents a share, compared with 34 cents per share, during the first three months of 2001.
Wall Street had expected Burlington to report share profits between 44 cents and 48 cents, with a mean forecast of 46 cents, according to a survey of eight analysts by Thomson Financial/First Call.
Freight revenues declined 6 percent to $2.14 billion, according to a company news release.
Burlington shares closed on Monday at $28.20, down 70 cents. Railroad stocks such as Burlington have given up in recent weeks some gains driven by hopes of a rebound in the U.S. economy. Burlington is up about 7 percent over the last three months, well ahead of the less than 1 percent rise for the Dow Jones U.S. Total Market Index.