Union Pacific Corp saw its profit rise by 6.2%, as the U.S. railroad raised prices, helping offset the impact of severe winter weather and record flooding that damaged rails in the Midwest.  The Omaha, Nebraska-based company’s net income rose to $1.4 billion, or $1.93 per share, in the first-quarter ended March 31 from $1.31 billion, or $1.68 per share, a year earlier. Total operating revenue fell to $5.4 billion from $5.5 billion.

Railroad transportation company CSX reported higher-than-expected earnings for the first quarter, on the back of lower expenses and higher traffic. The quarterly earnings came in at $1.02 a share, beating Wall Street estimates of 91 cents a share (based on FactSet survey).CSX’s expenses  declined -2% year-over-year to $1.79 billion, owing to efficiency gains – according to the company. The company experienced a +17% year-over-year growth in operating income, which touched $1.22 billion in the quarter.  

Union Pacific Corp.’s stock price jumped +8% in early trading on Tuesday, following the announcement of  Jim Vena as the new chief operating officer (COO) at the railroad company. Railroad industry veteran Vena, 60, worked with the late Hunter Harrison  to implement Harrison’s designed “precision scheduling railroading” (PSR) strategy for improving several railroads. Union Pacific connects 23 states in western United States.Nevertheless, the company adopted the PSR plan on Oct. 1 to improve the situation and to boost profitability by 2020. The appointment of Vena made several analysts more hopeful of Union Pacific’s ability to successfully implement the PSR strategy.