The shares of railroad company CSX Corp. (CSX), which I first wrote about on May 1, 2009, at a price of $30.56, have surged through $60 and $70 resistance levels, and now obviously would be a good time to consider taking some profits, if you're near $30 with CSX.

However, those investors who can tolerate the risk can maintain their full position with CSX, as there's more upside ahead.

Look for CSX's 2011 revenue to increase 6% to 8%, after a nearly 18% surge in 2010. Volumes should rise 5% to 7% this year, and overall prices for transport services should rise, albeit with some softness in selected price categories. Any above-trend U.S./global GDP growth rates will improve CSX's performance.

Continue reading CSX Corp.: Time to Take Some Profits?

CSX Corp.: Time to Take Some Profits? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 25 Feb 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Canadian Pacific Railway Is Leaving the Station

Canadian Pacific Railway Is Leaving the Station originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 03 May 2010 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Berkshire Hathaway buying Burlinton Northern Santa Fe

Berkshire Hathaway buying Burlinton Northern Santa Fe originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Burlington Northern's train is leaving the station

Burlington Northern's train is leaving the station originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Kansas City Southern: On the border lies a gem

Kansas City Southern: On the border lies a gem originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 29 Jul 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chasing Value: Has BNI become 'Berkshire' Northern Santa Fe

Chasing Value: Has BNI become 'Berkshire' Northern Santa Fe originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 17 Feb 2009 12:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"Even with the poor outlook for the economy, there are many investment opportunities being created by high energy prices and the low dollar," notes Jim Powell. In his Global Changes & Opportunities Report, he explains, "American 'rust belt companies' look especially good."

"Surprisingly, rising fuel prices are making some American manufacturers more competitive and I could not be happier about the improved outlook for many efficient U.S. producers.

"U.S. machine tool makers are starting to take back some of the business they lost to Japan 20 years ago. U.S. imports of Chinese steel are declining dramatically, while domestic production is rising at rates not seen in years.

"The list of U.S. businesses that are benefiting from the new trade relationships will lengthen, but it won't happen overnight. It's not just a matter of being loyal to the home team. America will benefit from creating more real wealth instead of the flim-flam financial products that led to the phony boom.

Continue reading American favorites: Rust-belt resurgence?

American favorites: Rust-belt resurgence? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 14 Jul 2008 11:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is part of a series on some of the most memorable companies that have disappeared.

Inspired by what must have been a less than luxurious train ride from Buffalo to New York in the early 1860s, George Pullman founded the Pullman Palace Car Company in Illinois in 1867. The company had a long and illustrious business cycle that spanned more than a century. Starting from humble beginnings based solely upon the vision of one man , the company rose to grandeur via the railroad boom of the early 1900s. At one point, Pullman even owned it's own "company town." The town, called Pullman, was located 14 miles south of downtown Chicago and was home to nearly 9,000 men, women, and children at its peak under the control of Pullman.

As one would expect, just when things were in high gear for Pullman, the government intervened. In the interest of antitrust laws, Pullman Inc. was ordered by the Justice Department to divest itself of either the Pullman Company (operating) or the Pullman-Standard Car Manufacturing Company (manufacturing). After three years of negotiation, the Pullman Company was sold to a railroad consortium for approximately $40 million. In much the same way, the Justice Department is making trouble on the rails again today.

The Pullman Co. didn't vanish as much as it was fractured and absorbed. It began with the 1944 sell off of passenger car operating rights and continuing through until 1987 when subway car manufacturing, performed under the name Pullman Technology, was sold to Candian conglomerate, Bombardier. The merger and acquisition history of Pullman from 1981 through today reads like a who's who of transportation, oil, engineering, and associated technologies. In fact, I believe that George Pullman would be amazed to discover that the original thread of the Pullman name was still active in manufacturing as late as 2004, when Pullman is reported to have been manufacturing "rubberized" automotive parts under the control of Tenneco Automotive.

Let us know in the comments what you miss about Pullman. And be sure to check out other Companies That Have Vanished.

Companies that vanished: Pullman has a grand, century-long ride originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 06 Jun 2008 17:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Bipartisan legislation aimed specifically at increasing government regulation of railroads threatens to hamstring 25 years of successful growth and investment by that industry. The Railroad Antitrust Enforcement Act of 2007 (H.R.1650) would effectively undo specific and narrow antitrust process exemptions that were provided for the railroads by the Staggers Rail Act of 1980. The Staggers act effectively halted what had previously been a massive and staggering decline by American railroads. Currently, the railroads are effectively and efficiently regulated by the Surface Transportation Board.

The American Association of Railroads reported in a press release, "Since Staggers, railroads and their customers have benefited enormously. Railroads have reinvested $420 billion back into their systems since 1980. The result has been improved service and safety, and nearly double their traffic volumes -- all while lowering average rates by more than 50 percent in inflation-adjusted terms. That means the average rail [shipping customer] can move twice as much freight today for the same price as in 1980." AAR further reports that a just-released Morgan Stanley survey found customer satisfaction with rail service is at a historical high.

It should also be noted that the devastating decline suffered by the railroads prior to passage of Staggers is arguably the lynch pin of this nation's inability to establish reliable, desirable, and profitable mass transit for commuters by rail. The rate of investment by our freight railroads since 1980 could be one facet in bringing effective local and nationwide passenger rail service back within our grasp. The passage of H.R.1650 may effectively destroy any further hope of developing high-speed, cross-continental passenger rail service and the further expansion of local commuter rail services.

In an age when surface transportation is becoming incredibly more expensive and our airlines are in perilous distress, do we really need to limit our options by passing legislation which could severely injure a system that works? You may wish to consider contacting your legislators in an effort to halt H.R.1650 dead in its tracks.

Can reliable, profitable rail service be saved? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 04 May 2008 09:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading AAR March Report: Freight movement by railroads slows

AAR March Report: Freight movement by railroads slows originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 04 Apr 2008 13:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading AAR February Report: Freight movement by railroads

AAR February Report: Freight movement by railroads originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 07 Mar 2008 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading AAR report on freight movement via railroads

AAR report on freight movement via railroads originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 04 Feb 2008 14:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Investing in 2008: Where's the smart money going?

Investing in 2008: Where's the smart money going? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 01 Jan 2008 16:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading CSX: The railroad that thinks it can

CSX: The railroad that thinks it can originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 19 Nov 2007 09:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Over the past year, transportation stocks have lagged other shares. Since last October, for example, the Dow Jones Transportation Index has lost 5.1%, while the S&P 500 index has gained 13.25%.

But not all stocks in the transport group have tracked the index. Railroad shares, for example, have outperformed both the sector and the overall market, with the S&P Supercomposite Railroad Index (a sub-index of the S&P Composite 1,500 index) rising by 17.3% over the period. That compares to, say, the S&P Supercomposite Trucking Index, which has dropped by 6.6%

Among the reasons for the relative strength in railroad shares: interest from value investors like Warren Buffett, and the fact that rising oil prices don't hurt this segment as much as other, more fuel-dependent industries.

Still, some might argue that at this point, much of the news, whether good or bad, is probably factored into prices. If you combine that with the fact that the railroad sector is back to long-term resistance levels relative to its trucking company counterpart, that suggests it might be a good idea to sell the former and buy the latter.

Otherwise, given a worrisome economic outlook and the relative underperformance of the transportation sector generally, it could be time for those who've been riding the rails to jump off the train -- before it runs out of track.

Michael Panzner is a 25-year veteran of the global stock, bond, and currency markets and the author of Financial Armageddon: Protecting Your Future from Four Impending Catastrophes and The New Laws of the Stock Market Jungle.

Are rising railroad stocks running out of track? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 17 Oct 2007 14:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Buffett continues his ride on the rails originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 08 Aug 2007 21:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Warren Buffett, Carl Icahn ride the rails originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 12 Jul 2007 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Judging by the most recently available statistics from the American Association of Railroads, the trade and productivity numbers currently coming out of Washington appear to be a bunch of bunk. Will someone please tell Ben Bernanke that cold hard facts will supplant pipe dreams any day?

Rail freight numbers for the week ended June 9 continue to trend downward and are consistent with trending for the year so far. By now, industrial surpluses and inventories should have been reduced to the point that manufacturing would be demanding an increased influx of raw materials, but such is not the case. Plainly put, consumer demand and domestic manufacturing are down, and it shows plainly in reduced freight numbers. The breakdown for the week ending June 9 is as follows:

• Intermodal freight (truck trailers or shipping containers): Down 3.2 percent from last year.
• Carload freight (not including intermodal): Down 5.6 percent.
• 4.0 percent fewer carloads originated from the West and 7.8 percent fewer originated from the East.
• Total cumulative rail freight volume for the first 23 weeks of 2007 was an estimated 754.9 billion ton-miles, down 3.1 percent from last year.

Canadian and Mexican railroad reports show similar trending, though not as significantly as the American declines. The single remarkable exception is the Mexican railroad, Kansas City Southern de Mexico (KCSM), which has reported intermodal volume of 4,878 trailers or containers, up 18.4 percent from the 23rd week of 2006. That significant increase, my friends, is reflective of manufactured goods they're shipping up to us.

Bear these numbers in mind the next time you get your statistical hogwash from Washington. They can tell you that more people are working and they can tell you that companies are manufacturing more stuff, but the true facts come out when the train cars get loaded (or don't).

American railroads point to a slightly chilling economy originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 23 Jun 2007 08:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. (NYSE: CP) maintenance workers have walked off the job in pursuit of a 13% wage increase over the next three years. This is the second strike this year against one of Canada's national railways and it affects approximately 3,000 rail workers. The previous strike in February involved engineers and yard workers. That dispute is currently in the hands of mediators.

Teamsters union leader William Brehl, indicated that for most of the workers involved in the current walkout, wages are the central issue. Union members are demanding a three year, 13% total wage increase, but the company has refused to agree to an increase of more than 10%. The deadlock indicates little promise for early resolution. The company has stated that the vacated work positions shall be immediately staffed with cross trained management personnel and it anticipates little effect to business operations.

At least one Canadian economist has indicated that this knot in Canadian logistics has the potential to push some would be Canadian rail traffic southward into the U.S. Jayson Myers, chief economist with the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, told CBC News, "We can't afford to see continuing series of strikes in our transportation sector, and then pretend that we have an efficiently working logistics system here in Canada."

Perhaps Warren Buffett is on to something.

Troubles on the railroads in Canada originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 May 2007 14:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A brief look at railroad freight traffic numbers offers some tell-tale signs as to where our economy is heading. I like to review railroad loading statistics because they can give you a crystal-ball edge in guessing where the big money is leaning in the volatile economic food chain. Basically, right now the numbers are firm year over year, but the freight demographics are what I find interesting.

According to the Association of American Railroads: Total rail freight volume is up 8.9% as compared to 2006, but while container volume is up about 14%, trailer volume is down 6.2%. That indicates that for the year so far, the railroads are probably moving more imported product than domestic product.

While total carload freight (not including inter-modal) was down nearly 1% this week as compared to the same week last year, total ton-miles increased 0.3%, indicating that less freight is moving but it is traveling more miles. That is clearly due to the decreasing inventories of manufactured product, which should bode well for manufacturers in the second and third quarters. That's assuming that consumer spending maintains current levels.

Nonmetallic mineral shipments have increased nearly 20% by volume over last year. This shows strength in base chemicals, base raw materials, glass, concrete, asphalt, industrial construction, and infrastructural improvements. Metallic ore shipments are down over 50%; I believe that shows weakness most especially in steel, tin, aluminum, and copper. Lumber and wood product shipments declined nearly 25% -- no reprieve for the home building market there! Petroleum product shipments are up 9.2% year over year, and coal shipments have increased 3.1%. Here's a tip, it looks like road building and resurfacing will be a big gainer this summer!

Continue reading The economy is firm but changing: Listen to the railroads

The economy is firm but changing: Listen to the railroads originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 18 Mar 2007 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.