Cargo Business Newswire

Monday, January 26, 2015

Union Pacific fourth quarter earnings up 22 percent

Union Pacific Corp. announced fourth quarter profits that bested analyst estimates on a strengthened U.S. economy and growing construction market.

Earnings rose 22 percent to $1.43 billion, or $1.61 a share, from $1.27 a year earlier, according to a UP statement. That exceeded the average estimate of $1.52 from 26 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

The rebound of U.S. consumer demand and homebuilding has been a boon to the railroad, which

posted the largest increase in carloads in the quarter among the four biggest U.S. railroads, according to the Association of American Railroads.

The AAR said traffic on all North American railroads grew 5.2 percent in the fourth quarter. Union Pacific’s traffic rose 6.9 percent.

For more of the Bloomberg story: www.bloomberg.com