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Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. logged a record fourth quarter in 2014, and says it’s on track for strong earnings this year, despite falling oil prices.
Calgary-based CP on Thursday reported net income of $1.476 billion on $6.62 billion for the year ending Dec. 31, up from $875 million on $6.133 billion in 2013.
For its fourth quarter, the company booked a record net of $451 million on $1.76 billion in revenues, up from $82 million on $1.607 billion in the year-earlier period.
CP “exited the year with double-digit revenue growth and a sub-60 operating ratio, proving again our ability to control costs while growing the top line,” CEO Hunter Harrison said in a release.
“In just two short years, CP has transformed from an industry laggard into a railway leader, and achieved its ambitious 2016 targets two full years ahead of schedule.”
The company, he said, “fully recognizes the impact of short-term volatility in commodity prices, but given the diversity of its business and proven ability to control costs, we’re confident in our ability to execute on our plan going forward.”
On its Canadian grain handle, CP reported full-year revenue of $988 million on 291,000 carloads, both up 14 per cent from 2013. On U.S. grain, CP reported full-year revenue of $503 million, up 17 per cent, on 173,000 carloads, down five per cent.
The company’s Q4 Canadian and U.S. grain handle were both flat at 75,000 and 46,000 carloads respectively. Canadian and U.S. Q4 grain revenue came in at $267 million and $155 million, up two and 27 per cent respectively.
CP’s full-year overall traffic hit 2.68 million carloads, down slightly from its 2013 handle. The largest shares of the railway’s traffic for the year came from international intermodal (546,000 carloads) and domestic intermodal (428,000).
Percentage-wise, the largest increases in CP’s full-year traffic came from crude oil (110,000 carloads, up 22 per cent) and domestic intermodal, up 16 per cent.
Agencies/Canadajournal
