(Adds details from release)
April 25 (Reuters) – Norfolk Southern Corp, one of the largest U.S. railroads by revenue, reported a rise in quarterly net profit on Wednesday, driven by higher volumes of consumer goods and a lower effective tax rate.
The Norfolk, Virginia-based railroad operator said first-quarter net income jumped to $552 million, or $1.93 cents per share, from $443 million, or $1.48 per share a year earlier.
The railroad struggled to reign in expenses, which increased 4 percent to $1.9 billion from the year-ago period, though higher fuel prices and costs from slower train speeds were partly offset by efficiency gains.
Its operating ratio, a closely watched measure of operating costs as a percentage of revenue, rose to 69.3 percent from 67.4 percent from January. A lower operating ratio shows improvement in profitability.
Quarterly revenue increased 6 percent to $2.7 billion from the first quarter of 2017, driven by a 3 percent rise in overall cargo volumes. Consumer goods grew 8 percent, which offset declines in merchandise and coal volumes.
Analysts expected $2.68 billion in revenue. (Reporting by Eric M. Johnson in New York Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Jeffrey Benkoe)
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