Net income for the three-months ended March 31, 2026, was at $1.377 billion, up 13% from first-quarter 2025 ($1.214 billion).
BNSF’s total revenue for the quarter came in at $5.970 billion, up 5% from first-quarter 2025’s $5.693 billion, which the Class I attributed primarily to “a 2% increase in unit volume and a 3% increase in average revenue per car/unit resulting from business mix, core pricing gains, and higher fuel surcharge revenue from higher fuel prices.”
According to BNSF, revenue changes for first-quarter 2026 also resulted from the following:
- “Consumer Products volumes increased 1% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to 2025 primarily due to higher west coast imports.
- “Agricultural and Energy Products volumes increased 12% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to 2025 primarily due to higher demand for grains, petroleum fuels, and oilseeds and meals.
- “Industrial Products volumes decreased 1% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to 2025 primarily due to lower shipments of plastics and lower demand for building products due to softness in the housing market.
- “Coal volumes decreased 2% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to 2025 primarily due to plant retirements, partially offset by increased demand from higher natural gas prices.”
BNSF’s operating expenses for first-quarter 2026 came in at $3.924 billion, up 1% from the prior-year period’s $3.873 billion. The railroad attributed the increase predominately due to the following factors:
- “Compensation and benefits expense was flat in the first quarter of 2026 compared to 2025, as wage inflation was offset by employee productivity.
- “Fuel expense was also flat in the first quarter of 2026 compared to 2025, as increased fuel efficiency offset higher volumes and higher average fuel prices.
- “Materials and other expense increased 11% in the first quarter of 2026 compared to 2025, primarily due to higher casualty related spend.
- “There were no significant changes in purchased services, equipment rents, depreciation and amortization or interest expense.”
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