Earnings Watch: UPS, ODFL Rise; Knight, P.A.M., Hub, Echo Fall
At a time when many trucking companies are reporting lower third quarter profits, two report slight gains – but they remain the exception rather than the rule.
International Package Growth Drives UPS Profits
UPS Inc. (NYSE:UPS) reported net income increased 1% to $1.27 billion, or $1.44 per share, up from $1.257 billion, or $1.39 per share, a year earlier, due in large part to higher profit from international operations. Earnings per share were 1 cent better than analysts’ expectations.
Total reported revenue was $14.9 billion, up 4.9% over the same quarter last year for the Georgia-based fleet.
In the company’s supply chain and freight segment, revenue increased 8.1%, to $2.6 billion, primarily due to the Coyote Logistics acquisition midway through the third quarter last year.
According to the company, weak market conditions in its air freight forwarding and less-than truckload markets weighed on top-line growth, as operating profit declined 5.9% to $206 million from a year earlier.
UPS Freight LTL revenue per hundredweight increased 3.7% over the same period last year, however, “total tonnage remains challenged by current market conditions,” noted the company. UPS Freight revenue fell 5.3% to $701 million.
U.S. domestic package revenue increased 4.8% over the third quarter of 2015, to $9.3 billion, but the unit’s operating profit slid 0.5% to $1.25 billion.
International package operating profit jumped 14% to $576 million, a record for any third quarter in company history.
UPS reaffirmed it expects adjusted earnings for 2016 to be between $5.70 to $5.90 per share.
ODFL Profit Edges 1.4% Higher
Profits increased by a slightly greater margin at Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. (NASDAQ: ODFL), as the mainly LTL fleet reported a 1.4% uptick, hitting $85.6 million.
Earnings per share in the most recent quarter were $1.03, 6 cents better than a consensus estimate from analysts, and up from 99 cents a year earlier.
Revenue increased just 0.4% …Read the rest of this story
