CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific’s operating profit and revenue declined in the first quarter, but executives said the railway was gaining momentum as volume reached an all-time high in March.
Quarterly operating income declined 6%, to $780 million, as revenue declined 4%, to %1.95 billion, CP reported on Wednesday. Earnings per share, adjusted for the impact of one-time items, rose 1%, to $4.48.
CP’s operating ratio, adjusted for one-time items, was 58.5%, a 0.7-point improvement compared to a year ago.
Volume was up 0.8% for the quarter when measured by carloads and was flat when measured by revenue ton-miles, the favored metric of the Canadian railways. CP did post a record March for revenue ton-miles and says the momentum has continued into the second quarter.
CP’s traffic in the first quarter was affected by harsh winter weather in February. January volume came in above expectations, Chief Marketing Officer John Brooks says, while March was a record month thanks to strong bulk, merchandise, and domestic intermodal traffic.
CP expects to see volume grow in the high-single digit percentage range this year, Brooks says.
For the quarter, CP’s grain, coal, and automotive volume all grew by double digits, while energy, chemicals, and plastics traffic declined by double digits due to the pandemic’s impact on crude oil volumes.
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