The rail crash and CP

Article Excerpt

CP RAIL $127.77 (Toronto symbol CP; Shares outstanding: 175.1 million; Market cap: $22.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 1.1%; www.cpr.ca) expects to ship 70,000 carloads of crude oil in 2013, up sharply from just 13,000 in 2011. However, the July 6, 2013, derailment and explosion of a train in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, could hurt the oil-by-rail boom. (Note: Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Ltd. operated the train involved in the crash, not CP.) It seems likely that regulators will require railways to replace their current tanker cars with models that can better withstand collisions. They may also demand that railways place more workers on their trains and install automatic- braking equipment. Installing new safety gear could make it harder for CP to achieve its cost-cutting targets. Still, any new rules would apply to all railways. Moreover, crude oil accounts for just a small fraction of CP’s overall business. CP Rail is still a buy. buy…