Saying “we can look back with a lot of satisfaction” on 2011’s record performance by Norfolk Southern Corporation, CEO Wick Moorman told stockholders at the company’s 30th annual meeting, held today in Williamsburg, Va., that he is “confident, optimistic, and enthusiastic about our future business prospects.”

Moorman outlined a string of records achieved in 2011 – revenues, operating income, net income, and earnings per share – and noted that the company set first-quarter records in those same categories in 2012.

“We will continue to position the company for sustained growth through strategic investments and hiring,” Moorman said. “Our transportation network is functioning well, we have a strong capital budget, and the right projects are under way to enhance our business franchises.”

Moorman paid tribute to the company’s employees for earning their 23rd consecutive Harriman Gold Medal, recognizing Norfolk Southern’s employee safety record as the best in the industry. “Among all our accomplishments in 2011, our phenomenal employee safety record was unmatched not only in what it meant for our people and their families, along with the communities and customers we serve, but also for how it continued to influence safety improvement for our entire industry,” Moorman said.

Moorman took a moment to reflect on the company’s 30th anniversary. “We boast a proud and strong lineage of predecessor companies that helped pave the way for our contemporary success,” he said. To recognize that heritage, the company is painting 20 locomotives in the color schemes of selected predecessor railroads.

In official business, stockholders re-elected 10 directors whose terms will expire in 2013: Gerald L. Baliles, director of the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia; Erskine B. Bowles, senior advisor to BDT Capital Partners LLC and to Carousel Capital; Robert A. Bradway, president and chief operating officer of Amgen, Inc.; Wesley G. Bush, chief executive officer and president of Northrop Grumman Corporation; Daniel D. Carp, chairman of the board of Delta Air Lines, Inc.; Karen H. Horn, a partner with Brock Capital Group; Steven F. Leer,  executive chairman of the board of Arch Coal; Michael D. Lockhart, retired chairman of the board, president, and chief executive officer of Armstrong World Industries, Inc.; J. Paul Reason, retired admiral and former commander in chief of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet; and Moorman.

Stockholders ratified appointment of KPMG LLP as auditors and approved an advisory resolution on the compensation of executive officers.

Moorman’s remarks to stockholders and a new video are posted in the Investors section of the NS website.

Norfolk Southern Corporation is one of the nation’s premier transportation companies. Its Norfolk Southern Railway subsidiary operates approximately 20,000 route miles in 22 states and the District of Columbia, serves every major container port in the eastern United States, and provides efficient connections to other rail carriers. Norfolk Southern operates the most extensive intermodal network in the East and is a major transporter of coal and industrial products.