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Re: Spending A Lot Too
Author: mook
Date: 11-10-2014 - 15:26

When you're spinning off the kind of cash the stories talk about, and you're "private" as in don't have to worry about the stock market and next quarter's analyst projections, you can spend money on capital improvements. Now will they spend money on getting enough employees to run all the trains they need to move?

In principle, as a "private" company, BNSF can spend like a drunken sailor as long as Warren's oversight isn't dimmed by it. Ultimately, the limiting factor is how much of Berkshire's portfolio BNSF is. At current values, it looks like it's a nontrivial piece, but still a relatively small one, so as long as the insurance companies are printing cash too BNSF probably doesn't have much to worry about.

UP may need to watch out - they still have the stock market to worry about, and their investors want dividends and capital gains EVERY QUARTER. Spending money on the railroad is only OK as long as those dividends and gains keep coming.

What ever happened to the stories that the railroads (at least, the Class 1's) couldn't make enough to cover their cost of capital?

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Subject Written By Date/Time (PST)
  BNSF is a "Cash Machine" Bill Maltby 11-10-2014 - 08:16
  Re: BNSF is a "Cash Machine" Pilawt 11-10-2014 - 10:46
  Spending A Lot Too J 11-10-2014 - 13:57
  Re: Spending A Lot Too mook 11-10-2014 - 15:26
  Warren owes a lot to a certain J.J. Hill pdxrailtransit 11-10-2014 - 15:47
  Re: Warren owes a lot to a certain J.J. Hill Graham Buxton 11-10-2014 - 16:15
  Re: Warren owes a lot to a certain J.J. Hill WILL 11-10-2014 - 17:15
  Re: Warren owes a lot to a certain J.J. Hill theconductor 11-11-2014 - 12:56
  Re: Warren owes a lot to a certain J.J. Hill David Smith 11-10-2014 - 17:58
  Re: BNSF is a "Cash Machine" Brian Westgate 11-10-2014 - 15:21
  Re: BNSF is a "Cash Machine" agentatascadero 11-11-2014 - 15:55
  Re: BNSF is a "Cash Machine" Brian Westgate 11-11-2014 - 16:44
  Re: BNSF is a "Cash Machine" Craig Tambo 11-12-2014 - 05:29
  Re: BNSF- AKA BRKB is a "Cash Machine"-I sure hope so. BOB2 11-12-2014 - 09:08
  Re: BNSF- AKA BRKB is a "Cash Machine"-I sure hope so. George Andrews 11-12-2014 - 19:06
  Re: BNSF- AKA BRKB is a "Cash Machine"-I sure hope so. Shortline Sammie 11-12-2014 - 19:17
  Re: BNSF- AKA BRKB is a "Cash Machine"-I sure hope so. George Andrews 11-12-2014 - 20:28
  Re: BNSF- AKA BRKB is a "Cash Machine"-I sure hope so. Max Wyss 11-13-2014 - 11:29


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