WSLS.com reported that Norfolk Southern plans to cut 2,000 jobs in response to its fourth quarter profits sliding 29 percent amidst its attempts to ward off a takeover bid from Canadian Pacific.
Read the entire article here.
Tag: Norfolk Southern
The Globe and Mail reported that a proxy fight is likely between Canadian Pacific and Norfolk Southern.
In a recent regulatory filing, NS said that the premium offered by CP in its proposal was too small and the merger and the voting trust proposed would not be approved by regulators.
Read the complete article here.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP)—U.S. News & World Report reported today that Norfolk Southern (NS) denied Canadian Pacific’s (CP) takeover offer, but it appears that CP persists, as they are reportedly set to bring their proposal to NS stakeholders.
Read the entire article at U.S. News & World Report Dec. 8.
Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) announced that its board of directors has unanimously rejected Canadian Pacific’s (NYSE:CP) previously announced unsolicited, low-premium, non-binding, highly conditional indication of interest to acquire the Company for $46.72 in cash and a fixed exchange ratio of 0.348 shares in a new company that would own Canadian Pacific and Norfolk Southern.
After a comprehensive review, conducted in consultation with its financial and legal advisors, the Norfolk Southern board concluded that the indication of interest is grossly inadequate, creates substantial regulatory risks and uncertainties that are highly unlikely to be overcome, and is not in the best interest of the Company and its shareholders.
Read more from StreetInsider.com.
Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd., the second-biggest railroad in Canada, is exploring a takeover of U.S. carrier Norfolk Southern Corp. in a fresh attempt to consolidate the North American industry, according to people familiar with the matter. The shares surged on the news. Canadian Pacific is raising financing and has held early-stage merger talks with Norfolk Southern, which is valued at about $24 billion, said two of the people, who asked not to be identified because deliberations are private. Discussions are preliminary and talks may not progress or lead to a deal, they said. Representatives for Canadian Pacific and Norfolk declined to comment. A move for Norfolk Southern, the second-biggest railroad in the eastern U.S., would revive Canadian Pacific’s effort to build a transcontinental carrier after talks with CSX Corp. failed last year. In floating the idea of a CSX tie-up, Canadian Pacific Chief Executive Officer Hunter Harrison upended the long-held view in the industry that it was fruitless to even discuss another merger because regulators would object. Read more from Bloomberg Business.
CHICAGO – Norfolk Southern joined local and state officials to dedicate a new fleet of environmentally friendly, rail yard locomotives for Chicago today at its 47th Street intermodal facility.
The engines are branded “Eco” locomotives for their operating efficiencies in reducing emissions and fuel consumption. More than $19 million in grant funding through the federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program (CMAQ) made the $30 million public-private partnership to replace Norfolk Southern’s entire Chicago yard locomotive fleet possible. The new units feature a stylistic green paint scheme with an Illinois-shaped icon and the slogan “Working Together for a Cleaner State.”
“These locomotives will be rolling billboards in Chicago for years to come of one of the finest examples of collaboration between public and private partners to think and act big on diesel emission reduction technology,” said Norfolk Southern Vice President Mechanical Don Graab. “The bottom line is cleaner air quality for Chicago residents. We thank the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Illinois Department of Transportation, and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning for their partnership in helping us achieve this goal for our locomotive fleet.”
Read more from Sys-Con Media.
The Surface Transportation Board today approved Norfolk Southern Railway Company’s (NSR) acquisition of approximately 283 miles of rail line in Pennsylvania and New York from the Delaware & Hudson Railway Company, Inc. (D&H), subject to certain conditions. The lines at issue, known as D&H’s South Lines, consist of approximately 267 miles of the main line between Sunbury/Kase, Pa., and Schenectady, N.Y., and approximately 15 miles of the running track between Voorheesville Junction and Delanson, N.Y.
In reaching its decision, the Board found that NSR’s acquisition of the South Lines from D&H is not likely to cause a substantial lessening of competition or create a monopoly or restraint of trade. The Board found this to be true, even when taking into account D&H’s planned discontinuance of trackage rights that connect to the D&H South Lines, which are the subject of a separate proceeding. The Board concluded that any anticompetitive effects are unlikely and, even if they were to occur, would be far outweighed by the very strong public benefits of the transaction. Such benefits include allowing NSR to provide more reliable, safe, and efficient service for shippers and allowing NSR and rail transportation generally to provide more effective competition with other modes of transportation, such as trucking and barge. The Board issued the approval subject to a number of conditions, including a condition that NSR enter into two voluntary commercial agreements with D&H to preserve certain shippers’ access to two carriers (NSR and D&H).
The Board issued its decision today in Norfolk Southern Railway Company—Acquisition and Operation—Certain Rail Lines of the Delaware and Hudson Railway Company, Inc., FD 35873. That decision may be viewed and downloaded at the STB website, www.stb.dot.gov, under “E-LIBRARY/Decisions & Notices/05/15/2015.”
Norfolk Southern Corporation March 2 announced that James A. Squires will succeed Charles W. “Wick” Moorman as chief executive officer. The action by the company’s board of directors is part of its planned succession process and will be effective June 1, 2015.
Squires will continue in his current capacity as president and with all major divisions reporting to him, while Moorman will continue as executive chairman of the board of directors. Moorman and Squires will work closely together to ensure a seamless transition of leadership responsibilities.
“Jim has the right experience and vision to advance Norfolk Southern’s traditions of safety and service,” said Steven F. Leer, NS’ lead independent director. “NS is well-positioned to continue leading and innovating, and the board of directors is confident in the ability of the entire Thoroughbred team to deliver for our customers, shareholders, and communities.
“Building on our record results in 2014, we are entering a great new time of performance and possibilities,” Moorman said. “Thanks to the dedication of Norfolk Southern people, the support of our customers and business partners, and the outstanding leadership team in place at Norfolk Southern – led by Jim Squires – I am confident that the company is poised for continued growth, success, and shareholder value creation.”
“Leading NS is an incredible honor,” Squires said. “I join our 30,000 employees in pledging that we will do everything possible to exceed the expectations of our shareholders and the people and businesses who depend on us. We welcome that opportunity, and we will meet that challenge.”
Squires, 53, joined Norfolk Southern in 1992 and served in several law positions before being named vice president law in 2003, senior vice president law in 2004, senior vice president financial planning in 2006, executive vice president finance in 2007, executive vice president administration in 2012, and president in 2013.
A native of Hollis, N.H., Squires is a graduate of Amherst College, where he received a bachelor of arts in Ancient Greek in 1983. After graduation, he spent a year as Amherst-Doshisha Fellow at Doshisha University in Kyoto, Japan. He then served in the U.S. Army from 1985 to 1989. In 1992, he received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Chicago Law School, where he has served as a member of the Visiting Committee.
A native of Hattiesburg, Miss., Moorman, 63, joined NS predecessor Southern Railway in 1970 as a coop student. He was named chairman, president and CEO in 2006, succeeding David R. Goode. In 2011, Railway Age magazine named Moorman “Railroader of the Year.”
The nation’s four major railroads are still carrying less freight than they were before the recession. But the last decade has been an exhilarating ride for them nonetheless — an era of growing profits, soaring stock prices and ambitious investments.
For Jacksonville-based CSX Corp., freight volume has dropped 7 percent since 2004. Meanwhile, its shares have climbed to $35 from less than $6, and its net income has risen 450 percent, to almost $1.9 billion in 2013, according to SEC filings.
Read more from The Florida Times-Union.
An acceleration of resource additions, coupled with the annual volume decline after Thanksgiving, should provide incremental improvements in train performance and terminal fluidity heading into next year, Norfolk Southern Corp. officials said in a service update posted on the Class I’s website on Monday.
“As severe winter weather will have an adverse impact to operations, we expect a return to historical train performance and velocity toward the end of the second quarter of 2015,” they said. “We remain committed to an improved operating environment ahead.”
Read the complete story at Progressive Railroading.