Marten Transport Profits Dip
Quarterly and annual net income dipped at Marten Transport Ltd. even though revenue rose year-over-year in both cases, the Mondovi, Wisconsin, fleet said Jan. 26 .
Three of the carrier’s four divisions did improve profitability — dedicated contract carriage, intermodal and freight brokerage — but the truckload segment made less money for the quarter and the year.
Marten ranks No. 47 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.
For the quarter, Marten earned $8.3 million, or 25 cents a share, on revenue of $172.7 million compared with $8.79 million, or 26 cents, on revenue of $168.8 million during the last three months of 2015.
“Despite persistent softness in the freight market, which has challenged our truckload segment, we have continued to demonstrate the strength of our unique multifaceted business model by achieving our eighth consecutive year-over-year increase in quarterly operating income within each of our dedicated, intermodal and brokerage segments,” Chairman and CEO Randolph Marten said in the company’s earnings statement.
“We remain confident in our ability to profitably capitalize on growth opportunities across all of our business units with our competitive position, cost control emphasis, modern fleet and strong balance sheet,” Marten said.
Looking at performance through operating ratio, expenses as a percentage of revenue, the dedicated unit did best at 88.6. The other three divisions ranged from 90.4 to 93.3.
For the year, the company earned $33.5 million, or $1.02 a share, on revenue of $671.1 million, compared with $35.7 million, or $1.06, on revenue of $665 million on 2015.
