By Railfan & Railroad Staff

KANSAS CITY — Kansas City Southern has rejected a takeover bid worth $20 billion, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The offer came two months after rumors first began circulating that Blackstone Group Inc. and Global Infrastructure Partners had been working with banks to finance a deal to take over the railroad. According to the Wall Street Journal, the two private equity firms offered $208 per share of the railroad but were rejected by the company that thought it was a low ball offer. When news of a potential sale first broke on July 31, KCS stock jumped 14 percent in just 15 minutes.

Although KCS is the smallest of North America’s seven Class One railroads, it is the only one with a significant presence in Mexico, making it a particularly fruitful target for investors or other railroads.