EGL’s Fourth-Quarter Income Falls

CEO Teams With New Partners in Offer to Take Firm Private
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Transportation and logistics firm EGL Inc. said its fourth-quarter income fell to $10.9 million or 27 cents a share, from $19.1 million or 47 cents in the previous fourth quarter.Revenue rose to $861.3 million from $835.1 million the previous year, EGL said late Tuesday.Meanwhile, EGL’s Chief Executive Officer James Crane said in a statement Wednesday that he was teaming with new investment partners in a $36 per-share, approximately $1.2 billion bid to take the company private.Crane said the offer was backed by Centerbridge Partners and the Woodbridge Co., while the original offer, made in January, had been backed by General Atlantic LLC. (Click here for previous coverage.)For the full year, EGL’s net income dipped to $56.3 million or $1.38 per share, from $58.2 million or $1.22 in 2005, while full-year revenue rose to $3.2 billion from $3.1 billion.Operating income for the year rose 1% to $96.5 million, EGL said. Crane called the quarter’s performance “disappointing” but said the company was “taking the necessary steps to address [its] the financial performance.” EGL, which operates under the name Eagle Global Logistics, is ranked No. 11 on the Transport Topics 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.