Summary
Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. (CP) reported its first-quarter results for 2026, showing a slight decrease in total revenues to $3.701 billion from $3.795 billion in the prior year, driven primarily by lower freight revenues per revenue ton-mile, despite an increase in overall revenue ton-miles. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) also saw a modest decline to $0.94 from $0.97 year-over-year. The company's operating ratio, a key measure of efficiency, slightly worsened to 66.0% from 65.3%, indicating higher operating expenses relative to revenues. Despite the revenue and EPS dip, CPKC highlighted a significant increase in its quarterly dividend declaration to $0.268 per share, a 17.5% rise from the previous quarter, signaling confidence in future performance and a commitment to returning capital to shareholders. The company also announced a new normal course issuer bid to repurchase up to approximately 44.9 million common shares. The financial results were impacted by a strengthening Canadian dollar and lower fuel prices, with notable increases in grain and intermodal volumes being partially offset by declines in coal and energy-related shipments.
Key Highlights
- 1Total revenues decreased by 2% to $3.701 billion for Q1 2026 compared to $3.795 billion in Q1 2025.
- 2Diluted EPS decreased by 3% to $0.94 in Q1 2026 from $0.98 in Q1 2025.
- 3Operating ratio increased to 66.0% in Q1 2026 from 65.3% in Q1 2025, indicating a slight decrease in operational efficiency.
- 4The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.268 per share, an increase of 17.5% from the prior quarter, demonstrating a commitment to shareholder returns.
- 5Gross ton-miles (GTMs) increased by 2%, driven by higher volumes in Grain and Intermodal segments.
- 6The company's cash and cash equivalents increased significantly to $409 million as of March 31, 2026, from $184 million at December 31, 2025.
- 7Share repurchases continued under a normal course issuer bid, with 5.7 million shares repurchased in Q1 2026.