A Cowen and Company “snap” railroad shipper survey conducted over a one-day period indicates that CN “is likely to have a more difficult time with shippers supporting its proposed acquisition of Kansas City Southern. This compares to a more favorable view by shippers of Canadian Pacific acquiring KCS in our most recent survey.”
A bidding war has broken out for the Kansas City Southern, but it’s actually more like a chess game. Here are some observations about what it all could mean, especially in terms of railroad “real estate,” from my economist observation post.
“The strong demand environment, particularly across bulk, merchandise and domestic intermodal, coupled with our commitment to the foundations of Precision Scheduled Railroading enabled our success in the first quarter,” Canadian Pacific (CP) President and CEO Keith Creel reported during the merger-bound railroad’s earnings announcement.
CN on April 21 submitted to the U.S. Surface Transportation Board a prefiling notification of its intent to file an application seeking authority to combine with Kansas City Southern “further to CN’s superior proposal for a cash-and-stock transaction valued at $33.7 billion, or $325 per share.”
Canadian Pacific (CP) outlined why its combination with Kansas City Southern (KSC) is the only one “involving KCS that is in the public interest,” in an April 21 letter filed with the Surface Transportation Board (STB).
Canadian Pacific (CP) and Kansas City Southern (KCS) have announced that more than 405 customers and stakeholders are backing their planned combination, “CPKC.”
Kansas City Southern’s first-quarter financials were slightly off from the prior-year period due to several factors, but the merger-bound Class I says it anticipates improved operating and service metrics and revenue growth this year.
SMART Transportation Division (SMART-TD) President Jeremy R. Ferguson has sent a letter to Canadian Pacific (CP) President and CEO Keith Creel stating that the union he runs generally supports what CP and Kansas City Southern (KCS) are seeking from the Surface Transportation Board for their merger.
Merger applicants Canadian Pacific (CP) and Kansas City Southern (KCS) are refuting the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) recent filing with the Surface Transportation Board (STB) questioning use of a voting trust and granting KCS an exemption under merger rules established about 20 years ago.
Two first-quarter 2021 surveys of rail shippers on pricing and business outlook as well as equipment needs conducted by Cowen and Company analysts Jason Seidl (Managing Director and Railway Age Wall Street Contributing Editor), Matt Elkott and Elliot Alper indicate that, compared with the previous quarter, Class I railroad customers are anticipating somewhat higher rate increases, and a slight decline in new railcar demand.