New York, July 29, 2022 -- Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") upgraded the ratings of Union Pacific Corporation, including the long-term issuer rating and senior unsecured rating, each to A3 from Baa1. The rating agency also affirmed Union Pacific's Prime-2 commercial paper rating. Moody's also upgraded the senior secured ratings of Union Pacific's wholly owned subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad Company, to Aa2 from Aa3. The outlook is stable.
The rating upgrades reflect Moody's expectation that Union Pacific will continue to operate with excellent scale and a diversified customer base. Further, the company will have opportunities to improve its operating margin as network fluidity and service levels rebound, enabling it to transport more volume across its network over the next 12-18 months. Moody's expects the company's debt/EBITDA to improve moderately to the mid 2-times range, benefiting from the resiliency of railroad's business even with tempered expectations for economic growth.
Ratings upgraded:
Issuer: Union Pacific Corporation
Long-term issuer rating upgraded to A3 from Baa1
Senior unsecured ratings upgraded to A3 from Baa1
Senior unsecured shelf rating upgraded to (P)A3 from (P)Baa1
Senior unsecured medium-term note program rating upgraded to (P)A3 from (P)Baa1
Subordinate shelf rating upgraded to (P)Baa1 from (P)Baa2
Preferred shelf rating upgraded to (P)Baa2 from (P)Baa3
Issuer: Union Pacific Railroad Company
Senior secured rating upgraded to Aa2 from Aa3
Equipment note pass through certificates upgraded to Aa2 from Aa3
Pass through certificates upgraded to Aa2 from Aa3
Issuer: Unif. Govt. of Wyandotte Co./Kansas City, KS
Senior Unsecured Industrial Revenue Bonds upgraded to A2 from A3
Issuer: Westside Intermodal Transportation Corp.
Senior Unsecured Industrial Revenue Bonds upgraded to A2 from A3
Ratings affirmations:
Issuer: Union Pacific Corporation
Commercial paper rating affirmed at Prime-2
Outlook Actions:
..Issuer: Union Pacific Corporation
....Outlook, Remains Stable
..Issuer: Union Pacific Railroad Company
....Outlook, Remains Stable
RATINGS RATIONALE
Union Pacific's A3 senior unsecured rating is supported by its position as one of the two largest rail franchises in the US. The company's network provides access to key ports along the Pacific Coast and Gulf Coast, interconnects with Canada's rail system and has principal border crossings with Mexico. Union Pacific also benefits from a well-diversified freight mix and strong competitive positions across automotive, chemicals and certain industrial products sectors. Moody's expects Union Pacific to produce moderate revenue growth and robust free cash flow over the next year while maintaining moderate financial leverage. Further, certain investments made in the second quarter of 2022 should help Union Pacific to augment efficiency and capture incremental volume, thereby leading its operating margin higher than levels seen in Q2 2022. The rating is constrained by the capital intensity of the business and Union Pacific's exposure to coal. Coal represents less than 10% of the company's freight volume.
The stable outlook reflects Moody's expectations of moderate revenue growth, an increase in operating margin towards 45% by the end of 2023, and adjusted debt/EBITDA around the mid 2-times over the next 12-18 months.
ESG factors have a neutral-to-low effect (CIS-2) on Union Pacific's rating. This reflects the company's prudent financial policies and good management track record. Good governance (G-2) partly mitigates moderately negative exposures to environmental risks (E-3; extensive use of diesel-powered locomotives) and social risks related to health and safety (S-3; reportable injuries and train accidents) and human capital (high degree of unionization).
FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS
The ratings could be upgraded if Union Pacific demonstrates strong growth of its free cash flow as debt/EBITDA approaches 2.0 times. An upgrade would also require the company to maintain an operating margin above 40% and return on assets as measured by EBITA/average assets in excess of 15%.
The ratings could be downgraded if Moody's expects Union Pacific to sustain debt/EBITDA above 2.75 times. The inability to maintain network fluidity and good service levels, or a material weakening in operating performance, interest coverage, or asset efficiency could also give rise to a downgrade.
The methodologies used in these ratings were Surface Transportation and Logistics published in December 2021 and available at https://ratings.moodys.com/api/rmc-documents/360641, and Enhanced Equipment Trust and Equipment Trust Certificates published in July 2018 and available at https://ratings.moodys.com/api/rmc-documents/56462. Alternatively, please see the Rating Methodologies page on https://ratings.moodys.com for a copy of these methodologies.
Union Pacific Corporation operates one of the nation's largest railroad systems. With approximately 32,313 route miles across the western two-thirds of the US and access to all major coast ports and rail gateways, the railroad serves the agricultural, energy and industrial sectors and offers a premium service for containerized cargo (intermodal) and the automotive sector.
REGULATORY DISCLOSURES
For further specification of Moody's key rating assumptions and sensitivity analysis, see the sections Methodology Assumptions and Sensitivity to Assumptions in the disclosure form. Moody's Rating Symbols and Definitions can be found on https://ratings.moodys.com/rating-definitions.
For ratings issued on a program, series, category/class of debt or security this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to each rating of a subsequently issued bond or note of the same series, category/class of debt, security or pursuant to a program for which the ratings are derived exclusively from existing ratings in accordance with Moody's rating practices. For ratings issued on a support provider, this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to the credit rating action on the support provider and in relation to each particular credit rating action for securities that derive their credit ratings from the support provider's credit rating. For provisional ratings, this announcement provides certain regulatory disclosures in relation to the provisional rating assigned, and in relation to a definitive rating that may be assigned subsequent to the final issuance of the debt, in each case where the transaction structure and terms have not changed prior to the assignment of the definitive rating in a manner that would have affected the rating. For further information please see the issuer/deal page for the respective issuer on https://ratings.moodys.com.
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Regulatory disclosures contained in this press release apply to the credit rating and, if applicable, the related rating outlook or rating review.
Moody's general principles for assessing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks in our credit analysis can be found at https://ratings.moodys.com/documents/PBC_1288235.
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Jonathan Kanarek, CFA
Senior Vice President
Corporate Finance Group
Moody's Investors Service, Inc.
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Dean Diaz
Associate Managing Director
Corporate Finance Group
JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376
Client Service: 1 212 553 1653
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