October 16, 2020
Class 1

Third quarter 2020 earnings reports begin with Kansas City Southern

Written by David C. Lester, Editor-in-Chief

Kansas City Southern is donating $500,000 to Ukrainian relief efforts.

David C. Lester

While the pandemic has certainly impacted rail revenues in 2020, including in the third quarter, no one really knew what to expect from the Q3 2020 earnings reports. Kansas City Southern released its Q3 2020 results this morning, and they are presented below. Note the link at the bottom of the page that will take you to the KCS website for more information on the railroad’s Q3 2020 earnings.

Kansas City Southern reported revenues of $659.6 million, a decrease of 12% from third quarter 2019. Overall, carload volumes were down 4% compared to prior year.

Third Quarter 2020

Third quarter revenues were $659.6 million, a decrease of 12% primarily resulting from lower volumes driven by a decline in demand due to COVID-19 and lower commodity prices, lower fuel surcharge, and unfavorable foreign currency impacts.

Third quarter operating expenses were $388.1 million. Operating income was $271.5 million and the reported operating ratio was 58.8%. Third quarter net income was $190.2 million, or $2.01 per diluted share. Adjusted third quarter operating income, net income and diluted earnings per share were as follows: