Railroad Stock Winners and Losers: CSX

Shares of railroad companies were moving higher Wednesday afternoon, led by CSX(CSX Quote), which reported higher-than-expected first-quarter earnings late Tuesday.

CSX said Tuesday its first-quarter profit fell 30% from a year earlier, but the results easily beat Wall Street's expectations as cheaper fuel and lower costs balanced offset slackened demand.

Jacksonville, Fla.-based CSX reported EPS of 62 cents on $2.25 billion of revenue, beating analysts' estimates, which averaged 51 cents.

Stifel Nicolaus analyst John G. Larkin said "the company posted a very solid operating ratio in the first quarter in spite of the challenging operating environment."

He credited the company's ability to raise shipping prices and keep costs tight.

"The company's balance sheet appears strong enough to weather even a protracted economic downturn," he added.

Elsewhere, Kansas City Southern(KSU Quote) shares were up 6.9% to $16.18.

Union Pacific(UNP Quote) shares were higher by 0.7% to $46.51.

Canadian National Railway(CNI Quote) shares were up 2.5% to $40.66.

Norfolk Southern(NSC Quote) shares were up 1.3% to $36.92.

Canadian Pacific(CP Quote) shares were up 1.8% to $32.35.