Billionaire Investor Dan Loeb Bought Back Into Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern In Q2 — Here's Where the $85 Billion Rail Merger Stands

Billionaire Investor Dan Loeb’s Third Point bought back into both Union Pacific Corp. (NYSE:UNP) and Norfolk Southern Corp. (NYSE:NSC) in the second quarter, after cutting each in the first.

Third Point held 600,000 Norfolk Southern shares worth $188.8 million and 350,000 Union Pacific shares worth $95.2 million as of June 30, according to its 13F filing, a quarterly report of investment holdings that must be submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Both stakes stood at 100,000 shares each at the end of the first quarter.

Third Point first built the positions in the third quarter of 2025, buying 1.65 million Norfolk Southern shares and 875,000 Union Pacific shares after the merger was announced. By March 31, the fund cut Union Pacific by 94% and Norfolk Southern by nearly 90%.

One Share Plus $88.82 in Cash

Union Pacific agreed in July 2025 to acquire Norfolk Southern in a deal valued at about $85 billion. Norfolk Southern shareholders would receive one Union Pacific share and $88.82 in cash for each share they hold. The combination would create the first coast-to-coast railroad in the U.S.

Shareholders of both companies approved the deal in November 2025. Completion still requires approval from the Surface Transportation Board, the federal agency that oversees rail mergers.

Union Pacific Eyes a Second-Half 2027 Close

The review has been slow. The board rejected the first application as incomplete in January and accepted a revised version in May. It set a schedule for public comment in August. Comments and protests on the merits are due Nov. 18.

On Nov. 4, the board denied Union Pacific’s appeal and ordered it to submit documents related to allegations of retaliation against opponents. The board has raised concerns about alleged remarks by Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena that may have discouraged shippers from speaking out. Union Pacific has said a customer’s position on the merger will not affect its rates or service.

Under the board’s schedule, final briefs are due May 28, 2027, and a final decision is due within 90 days after the record closes, a date the board hasn’t set.

Union Pacific anticipates closing the merger in the second half of 2027, CFO Jennifer Hamann said on the company’s October third-quarter earnings call.

Union Pacific collected $131.8 million more in fuel surcharges than it paid for fuel in the third quarter, Surface Transportation Board filings show, while rival BNSF, which opposes the merger, ran a $922.4 million shortfall through September.

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