Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) reported preliminary financial results for the quarter ended December 31, 2014. Earnings per share did not change in the fourth quarter from a year ago – largely because the railroad's coal revenue fell 15 percent on weak demand from utilities and export markets. This quarter results were also helped by a lower tax rate and reduced interest expenses.
See related articles: Union Pacific Corporation (UNP): Strong Earnings but Cautious Outlook , CSX Corporation: Strong Earnings and Strong Outlook, Canadian Pacific Railway (CP-CA): In-line Earnings Performance; No Change in Dividend, Canadian National Railway (CNR): Earnings Beat and a Dividend Positive Surprise, Kansas City Southern (KSU): Earnings beat despite revenue shortfalls.
This earnings release follows the earnings announcements from the following peers of Norfolk Southern Corporation – Union Pacific Corporation (NYSE:UNP), CSX Corporation (NYSE:CSX), Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI), Kansas City Southern (NYSE:KSU) and Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (NYSE:CP).
Highlights
- Earnings growth from operating margin improvements as well as one-time items.
The table below shows the preliminary results and recent trends for key metrics such as revenues and net income growth:
Gross Margin Trend
Companies sometimes sacrifice improvements in revenues and margins in order to extend friendlier terms to customers and vendors. Capital Cube probes for such activity by comparing the changes in gross margins with any changes in working capital. If the gross margins improved without a worsening of working capital, it is possible that the company's performance is a result of truly delivering in the marketplace and not simply an accounting prop-up using the balance sheet.
NSC-US's improvement in gross margins have been accompanied by a deterioration in the management of working capital. This leads Capital Cube to conclude that the improvements in gross margins are likely accounting trade-offs with the balance sheet and not strictly from operating decisions. Its working capital days have risen to 30.57 days from last year's levels of 14.72 days.
Cash Versus Earnings – Sustainable Performance?
Margins
The company's earnings growth has also been influenced by the following factors: (1) Improvements in operating (EBIT) margins from 30.51% to 31.05% and (2) one-time items. The company's pretax margins are now 27.53% compared to 27.18% for the same period last year.
Company Profile
Norfolk Southern Corp. transports coal and industrial products. It engages in the rail transportation of raw materials, intermediate products and finished goods. The company also transports overseas freight through several Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports. It operates an intermodal network through its subsidiary, Norfolk Southern Railway Co., which operates as a container port in the Eastern United States and provides connections to other rail carriers. The company was founded on July 23, 1980 and is headquartered in Norfolk, VA.