JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Corp. announced second quarter earnings of $308 million, or 78 cents a share, versus $385 million, or 93 cents a share, last year. Excluding the impact of discontinued operations related to The Greenbrier resort, earnings per share from continuing operations declined 24 percent from 95 cents to 72 cents.
Second quarter revenues of $2.2 billion were down 25 percent from the prior year, primarily due to a 21 percent decline in volume and lower fuel surcharge recovery. Volumes continued to decline across the board, although the rate of decline in the coal market accelerated in the second quarter.
“While the economy continues to significantly impact our business, there are some signs that we may be seeing the bottom in many markets,” said Michael Ward, president, chairman and CEO. “Even in this difficult business environment, we are still strengthening our operations, optimizing our resources and making the right investments to prepare our network for the future.”
CSX continued to improve its safety performance, contributing to a further reduction in its casualty reserves of $70 million compared to last year. Combined with the company’s cost management efforts and increased network efficiency, operating expenses declined 27 percent, allowing the company to produce operating income of $582 million and an operating ratio of 73.4 percent for the quarter.
“By improving safety, reducing costs and increasing productivity we lessened the impact of the struggling global economy on our business,” said Tony Ingram, executive vice president and chief operating officer. “We remained aggressive in right-sizing our train network while still providing reliable service for our customers.”
