The Railroad Week in Review:
Fourth Quarter 2008


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  • Week in Review, 12/19/2008
    An in-depth analysis of the natural-gas exploration business as practiced in the Northeast's Marcellus shale formation. Notes from the NEW Railway age conference in Washington. Two final book reviews in time for last-minute holiday giving.

  • Week in Review, 12/12/2008
    Parallels between the auto bailout and the Creation of Conrail out of the Penn Central rubble. UBS' Rick Paterson ties together volume, pricing, productivity, valuations and foreign exchange and railroad performance. How short line operators can use Schwab's "Sell Alerts" to measure their roads' financial strength.

  • Week in Review, 12/5/2008
    Why a short line business model based on subsidies is doomed from the start. Yet another red-state-blue-state argument. Analysts agree: 2009 will be the pits in terms of revenue-unit counts. Canadian roads rail at adverse federal grain rate decision and what they might do in response. Kudos for The Pan am Clipper, PAR's quarterly employee magazine.

  • Week in Review, 11/21/2008
    Another volatile week in which the rails get hammered along with everybody else. Encouraging words from CSX and a number of short lines about new business successes. Larry Kaufman takes the other side of the red-state blue-state argument. CP analyst day stresses efficiency and growth; not much mention of anything east of Chicago
    .

  • Week in Review, 11/14/2008
    The Harvard Business Review on red state-blue state business opportunities. Sell-side analysts begin to see down-turn in rail results for 2009. Three excellent examples of short line new-business successes regardless of  the soft economy.

  • Week in Review, 11/7/2008
    Thoughts from all over on the results of this week's election results; implications for the rails. GWR posts strong third quarter results and positive outlook for 2009. CN picks up four short lines in Quebec. Dave Dealy on why operating expense per GTM is more meaningful than operating ratio.


  • Week in Review, 10/31/2008
    Out on the street it looks like consumers are still spending but the signs are against it continuing much longer. CP and KCS third-quarter earnings. Credit-Suisse predicts three percent volume loss for Class Is through 2009.


  • Week in Review, 10/24/2008
    When does the cost of running a smallish short line become too dear? Remarks framing the earnings reports that follow. Canadian National kicks off Earnings Week with ”meaningful upside 3Q results." Norfolk Southern finally gets an OR beginning with a six. Union Pacific freight revenue up by more than 16%. BNSF net income increases 31% and eps shoots up 35% as
    share-count drops three percent.


  • Week in Review, 10/17/2008
    Notes and observations from The ASLRRA Eastern Region meeting in Williamsburg at the beginning of the week. CSX turns in strong third quarter results and sees more of the same ahead. W&M hosts economic forum webcast: caveats for short lines. Book Corner: Switch Points, or how CN changed a corporate culture and so can you; Union Pacific Streamliners, lavishly illustrated with first-rate photos.

  • Week in Review, 10/10/2008
    A grim week on Wall Street. All rail and suppliers shares approach or pierce two-year support. State revenue short falls put rail assistance programs at risk. Low oil prices may bring the local owner-operator truckers out of hiding. How the credit crunch can hobble short lines. Week 38 short line and Class I volumes down again. Iowa Pacific picks up UK properties.

  • Week in Review, 10/3/2008
    The credit crisis deepened this week as bankers clamped down on lending to long-time customers and even to each other. It’s affecting short lines in different ways. Rail stocks trade down through a rough week; implications for short lines. Using technical analysis to gauge the market's perception of your connecting Class Is and how to profit from it. Why two rules for stock pickers apply to short lines. STB blesses CP+DME; GWR adds another
    .





 

 

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