Kansas City Southern withdraws its revenue growth forecast

Declining crude oil shipments and a strong U.S. dollar led Kansas City Southern on Thursday to withdraw its own predictions about its revenue this year.

Shares of the Kansas City-based railway company fell to a new low for the last 12 months at $92.63 but recovered some of their lost ground. The stock closed at $94.89, down $2.22, or 2.3 percent.

Michael Upchurch, the railway company’s chief financial officer, withdrew the guidance on revenue and on shipment volume at a transportation industry conference in Boston.

A slide show presentation on the company’s website cited weakness in energy markets and unfavorable foreign exchange rates that work against the railway’s reported revenue.

In presenting its first-quarter results last month, Kansas City Southern had said it expected revenue to grow this year “in the low single digits,” referring to the percentage rate of growth. Its forecast had noted the energy and currency issues but maintained revenue would grow this year.

Thursday’s decision reflected a change in that outlook, though the company did not provide new guidance.

Analyst Jon Braatz with Kansas City Capital Associates said both factors continued to hurt revenue after the first quarter ended March 31 and “seemed to have gotten worse.”

Kansas City Southern, like other railroad companies, reports its weekly carload volumes online. Braatz said these reports had signaled the continued softness in business.

This story was originally published May 14, 2015 at 10:22 AM with the headline "Kansas City Southern withdraws its revenue growth forecast."