Union Pacific Corporation

Union Pacific Corporation
Company typePublic
IndustryTransportation
Founded1969; 55 years ago (1969) in Utah, United States
HeadquartersUnion Pacific Center,
Omaha, Nebraska
,
United States
Area served
Western and Mid-Western United States
Key people
RevenueDecrease US$24.1 billion (2023)
Decrease US$9.1 billion (2023)
Decrease US$6.4 billion (2023)
Total assetsIncrease US$67.1 billion (2023)
Total equityIncrease US$14.8 billion (2023)
Number of employees
Increase 31,490 (2023)
SubsidiariesUnion Pacific Railroad
Websiteup.com
Footnotes / references
Financials as of December 31, 2023.
References:[1]

Union Pacific Corporation is a publicly traded railroad holding company. It is incorporated in Utah and is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. Its only operating subsidiary is Union Pacific Railroad.[1] Along with BNSF Railway, owned by Berkshire Hathaway, the companies have a near-duopoly on freight railroad transportation west of the Mississippi River.[2]

The corporate entity currently called Union Pacific Corporation was incorporated in 1969 as a holding company.

Notable companies acquired by Union Pacific and merged into Union Pacific Railroad include Missouri Pacific Railroad which included the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad, the Chicago and North Western Transportation Company, the Western Pacific Railroad, the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, the St. Louis Southwestern Railway, the SPCSL Corporation, and the Southern Pacific Transportation Company.

History

On July 1, 1862, after the passage of the Pacific Railway Acts, an entity called Union Pacific Railroad was incorporated. The act was approved by President Abraham Lincoln, and it provided for the construction of railroads from the Missouri River to the Pacific as a war measure for the preservation of the Union.[3][4][5][6] The railroad was constructed westward from Council Bluffs, Iowa to meet the Central Pacific Railroad line, which was constructed eastward from San Francisco Bay.[3] The railroads were united with the "Golden spike" in May 1869.[3] The combined Union Pacific-Central Pacific line became known as the First transcontinental railroad and the train route that operated on it was called the Overland Route.[3]

Union Pacific was entangled in the Crédit Mobilier scandal, a fraud involving the company, which hurriedly constructed the railroad, and Crédit Mobilier of America, which was formed to finance the construction, from 1864 to 1867 and exposed in 1872.[3] The company was significantly overbilled, with executives and financiers, led by Thomas C. Durant, Oakes Ames, and Oliver Ames, embezzling large sums of money.[3] The company faced financial difficulty during the Panic of 1873.[3]

In the 1870s, under the ownership of Jay Gould, the company expanded its rail network noticeably.[3] On January 24, 1880, Union Pacific Railroad was consolidated with Kansas Pacific Railway and Denver Pacific Railway under a new holding company called Union Pacific Railway. Jay Gould controlled all three railroads but, after leveraging the company and paying large dividends, Gould sold a large stake that year.[3]

The Union Pacific Railway declared bankruptcy during the Panic of 1893, in part due to losses from the fraud and new competition, and went into government receivership.[3] In 1898, under a bankruptcy plan sponsored by Kuhn, Loeb & Co., it emerged from the receivership under a new similarly named entity controlled by E. H. Harriman.[3][7]

In 1901, the company acquired a 46% interest in Southern Pacific Railroad; however, the government forced the company to sell the stake in 1913 due to antitrust concerns.[3]

The current holding company, Union Pacific Corporation, was established in 1969 with its incorporation in Utah as a holding company for the railroad and other subsidiaries.[3]

In 1982, Union Pacific Corporation acquired Missouri Pacific Railroad, which included the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad, and the Western Pacific Railroad.[8][9] The Missouri Pacific Railroad continued operations until January 1, 1997 when it was legally merged into Union Pacific Railroad.[10]

In 1986, the company acquired Overnite Transportation Company (now TForce Freight) for $1.2 billion.[11] At the time, it was the fifth largest trucking company in the United States and represented the expansion of Union Pacific east of the Mississippi River. It also created the first transcontinental transportation system in the United States.[12] However, the companies did not integrate well, exacerbated by issues with labor unions.[13] In 2001, the division acquired Motor Cargo Industries for $580 million.[14] In 2003, Union Pacific completed a corporate spin-off and initial public offering of Overnite. In 2005, the company was acquired by United Parcel Service for $1.3 billion.[15]

Union Pacific completed the corporate spin-off of Union Pacific Resources, its hydrocarbon exploration subsidiary, in 1996.[16][17] Anadarko Petroleum acquired Union Pacific Resources in 2000 for $4.4 billion in stock.[18][19][20]

In June 1995, the company acquired the 70% of Chicago and North Western Transportation Company that it did not already own for $1.1 billion.[21][22][23][24]

In 1996, Union Pacific Corporation acquired the Southern Pacific Rail Corporation, which included the Southern Pacific Transportation Company, the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, the St. Louis Southwestern Railway and the SPCSL Corporation, for $5.4 billion. It was led by Philip Anschutz.[25]

In 1997, the company sold 220 miles of track in northern Wisconsin and Michigan to Wisconsin Central Ltd. for $85 million.[26]

In 2000, due to a slowdown in business activity during the early 2000s recession, the company cut 2,000 jobs.[27]

In 2005, James R. Young was named CEO of the company.[28]

In 2015, Union Pacific Corporation legally merged the Southern Pacific Rail Corporation into Union Pacific Railway.[29]

Headquarters history

Union Pacific was headquartered in New York City at the time of the company's re-founding in 1969.[3] In 1998, CEO Drew Lewis relocated the corporate headquarters to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.[30] In 1997, the headquarters was shifted to Dallas, Texas.[31] In 2004, the corporate headquarters was relocated to Omaha to join the Union Pacific Railroad headquarters.[32]

Finances

Year Revenue
in mil. USD$ 		Net income
in mil. USD$ 		Total Assets
in mil. USD$ 		Price per Share
in USD$ 		Employees
2000[33] 10,765 842 30,917 7.56 50,500
2001[34] 10,830 966 31,552 9.80 48,700
2002[34] 11,159 1,341 32,772 11.09 47,300
2003[34] 11,551 1,585 33,496 11.23 46,400
2004[34] 12,215 604 34,596 11.58 48,300
2005[34] 13,578 1,026 35,620 13.17 49,700
2006[35] 15,578 1,606 36,515 17.52 50,700
2007[36] 16,283 1,855 38,033 22.78 50,100
2008[37] 17,970 2,335 39,722 26.95 48,200
2009[38] 14,143 1,890 42,184 22.10 43,500
2010[39] 16,965 2,780 43,088 32.35 42,900
2011[40] 19,557 3,292 45,096 41.68 44,900
2012[41] 20,926 3,943 47,153 51.26 45,900
2013[42] 21,963 4,388 49,731 67.61 46,445
2014[43] 23,988 5,180 52,372 92.50 47,201
2015[44] 21,813 4,772 54,600 92.58 47,457
2016[45] 19,941 4,233 55,718 84.65 42,919
2017[46] 21,240 10,712 57,806 108.51 41,992
2018[47] 22,832 5,966 59,147 138.23 41,967
2019[48] 21,708 5,919 61,673 180.79[49] 37,483
2020[50] 19,533 5,349 62,398 208.22[49] 30,960
2021[51] 21,804 6,523 63,525 251.93[49] 29,905
2022[52] 24,875 6,998 65,449 30,717
2023[1] 24,119 6,379 67,132 31,490

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Union Pacific Corporation 2023 10-K Report" (PDF). February 9, 2024.
  2. ^ Tully, Shawn (June 4, 2014). "The railroad with better profit margins than Google". Fortune.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Union Pacific Corporation". Encyclopedia.com.
  4. ^ "Pacific Railway Act (1862)". National Archives and Records Administration.
  5. ^ "Landmark Legislation: The Pacific Railway Act of 1862". United States Senate.
  6. ^ "An Act to aid in the construction of a railroad and telegraph line from the Missouri river to the Pacific ocean, and to secure to the government the use of the same for postal, military, and other purposes". Archived from the original on May 27, 2016.
  7. ^ Brian Solomon (2000). Union Pacific Railroad. Voyageur Press. pp. 35–43. ISBN 978-1-61060-559-5.
  8. ^ Holsendolph, Ernest (September 14, 1982). "3 RAILROADS GIVEN APPROVAL BY I.C.C. TO MERGE IN WEST". The New York Times.
  9. ^ Feaver, Douglas B. (December 23, 1982). "Union Pacific Merges Railroads After Chief Justice Refuses Stay". The Washington Post.
  10. ^ "Union Pacific Railroad 1997". UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION.
  11. ^ YOSHIHARA, NANCY (September 19, 1986). "Union Pacific Will Acquire Overnite for $1.2 Billion". Los Angeles Times.
  12. ^ Salpukas, Agis (September 19, 1986). "COMPANY NEWS; UNION PACIFIC TO GO EAST BY BUYING OUT TRUCKER". The New York Times.
  13. ^ "UP unloading truck unit". CNN. May 21, 1998.
  14. ^ "Union Pacific Unit to Buy Motor Cargo". The New York Times. October 16, 2001.
  15. ^ "Truckin': UPS buys Overnite". CNN. May 16, 2005.
  16. ^ "UNION PACIFIC CO. COMPLETES SPINOFF OF ENERGY COMPANY". Deseret News. October 17, 1996.
  17. ^ Siwolop, Sana (November 17, 1996). "Oil-Patch Bargain? Looking at a Union Pacific Spinoff". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331.
  18. ^ "Anadarko taps Union Pacific Resources". CNN. April 3, 2000.
  19. ^ "Anadarko to Acquire Union Pacific Resources". Los Angeles Times. April 3, 2000.
  20. ^ "COMPANY NEWS; ANADARKO TO BUY UNION PACIFIC Resources". The New York Times. April 4, 2000.
  21. ^ "COMPANY NEWS; ACQUISITION OF CHICAGO AND NORTH WESTERN COMPLETED". Dow Jones & Company. June 24, 1995.
  22. ^ "UP FORMS 3 SERVICE UNITS AS PART OF C&NW MERGER". Journal of Commerce. July 6, 1995.
  23. ^ "Union Pacific to Buy Remaining 70.5% of CNW : Transportation: The deal gives the railroad access to the lucrative coal fields located in eastern Wyoming". Los Angeles Times. March 11, 1995.
  24. ^ "Union Pacific Buys Remainder Of Cnw". The Spokesman-Review. March 11, 1995.
  25. ^ "Union Pacific Strikes Deal To Buy Southern Pacific Merger Would Create The Nation's Largest Railroad System". The Spokesman-Review. Bloomberg News. August 4, 1995.
  26. ^ "WISCONSIN CENTRAL BUYS UNION PACIFIC TRACK". The New York Times. January 29, 1997.
  27. ^ "COMPANY NEWS; UNION PACIFIC PLANNING TO CUT ABOUT 2,000 JOBS". Bloomberg News. December 28, 2000.
  28. ^ "Union Pacific Names Next Chief Executive". Associated Press. November 18, 2005.
  29. ^ "Commission File Number 1-6075 : UNION PACIFIC CORPORATION" (PDF). Up.com.
  30. ^ "UNION PACIFIC SIGNS LEASE FOR MARTIN TOWER CORPORATE OFFICES, EMPLOYEES TO MOVE TO BETHLEHEM BY FALL". The Morning Call. May 12, 1988.
  31. ^ "Union Pacific to Relocate". The New York Times. Reuters. March 19, 1997.
  32. ^ "Union Pacific Opens New HQ in Nebraska". KWMU. Associated Press. June 2, 2004.
  33. ^ "Annual Report 2004" (PDF).
  34. ^ a b c d e "2005 Annual Report" (PDF).
  35. ^ "2006 Annual Report" (PDF).
  36. ^ "2007 Annual Report" (PDF).
  37. ^ "2008 Annual Report" (PDF).
  38. ^ "2009 Annual Report" (PDF).
  39. ^ "2010 Annual Report" (PDF).
  40. ^ "2011 Annual Report" (PDF).
  41. ^ "2012 Annual Report" (PDF).
  42. ^ "2013 Annual Report" (PDF).
  43. ^ "2014 Annual Report" (PDF).
  44. ^ "2015 Annual Report" (PDF).
  45. ^ "2016 Annual Report" (PDF).
  46. ^ "20171231 10K". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 2018-11-18.
  47. ^ "20181231 10K". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  48. ^ "Inline XBRL Viewer". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 2022-08-02.
  49. ^ a b c "UNP Stock Chart". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved 2022-08-02.
  50. ^ "Inline XBRL Viewer". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 2022-08-02.
  51. ^ "Inline XBRL Viewer". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 2022-08-02.
  52. ^ "Union Pacific Corporation 2022 10-K Report" (PDF). February 10, 2023.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Union Pacific Railroad.
  • Official website
  • Business data for Union Pacific:
  • System map
  • Photographs of the Construction of the Union Pacific Railroad, 1868–69 at the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University