News Briefs - Jan. 27
The Latest Headlines:
- Marten’s 4Q, Annual Profits Rise
- DOT Assistant Secretary Max Frankel to Resign
- Arkansas Best Reports Higher Earnings
- Landstar System Reports Record Earnings
- Caterpillar Earnings Rise; Results Miss Expectations
- Old Dominion Freight Line Reports Record Income
- USA Truck's Fourth-Quarter, Annual Income Rise
- DOT Assistant Secretary Max Frankel to Resign
Marten’s 4Q, Annual Profits Rise
Refrigerated carrier Marten Transport Ltd. said late Wednesday it earned $5.2 million or for the fourth quarter or 36 cents a share, up from $3.5 million or 24 cents a year earlier.The company’s operating revenue for the quarter rose 24% to $105.7 million, it said in a statement.
For all of 2004, Marten earned $17.5 million or $1.21 a share, compared with $11.8 million or $1.02 a year earier.
DOT Assistant Secretary Max Frankel to Resign
Emil Frankel, the Department of Transportation’s assistant secretary for transportation policy, will resign his job effective Feb. 11, DOT Secretary Norman Mineta said Thursday.Frankel helped coordinate the development of the Bush administration’s surface transportation reauthorization proposal, also known as SAFETEA, and strengthened DOT’s commitment to intermodal transportation issues, Mineta said.
Frankel had served in the position for three years. Transport Topics
Arkansas Best Reports Higher Earnings
Arkansas Best Corp., parent of less-than-truckload carrier ABF Freight System, said Thursday its fourth-quarter net income was $24.4 million or 95 cents a share, up from $14.7 million or 58 cents.he company said its quarterly revenue was $454.5 million, a per-day increase of 15.4%.
For the year the company earned $75.5 million on $1.7 billion in revenue, up from $46.1 million and $1.5 billion for 2003.
ABF Freight System’s revenue was $420.3 million, a per-day increase of 16.3%, the company said. Its fourth-quarter tonnage rose 9% year-over year, the company said.
Arkansas Best is ranked No. 16 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies. Transport Topics
Landstar System Reports Record Earnings
Truckload carrier Landstar System Inc. said Thursday its net income for the fourth quarter was a record $24.6 million or 40 cents per share, compared with $15.1 million or 24 cents a year earlier.The company said its revenue increased 36% to a record $590 million for the 2004 fourth quarter, up from $434 million the previous year.
For the full year, Landstar earned $71.9 million or $1.16 a share, a rise from $50.7 million or 79 cents a share for 2003.
The firm said its carrier group of companies generated $401 million of revenue in the quarter, up from $326 million in the fourth quarter of 2003.
Landstar, ranked No. 15 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies, said it expected to earn 22 cents to 26 cents for the first quarter of 2005 and $1.25 to $1.45 for the full year. Transport Topics
Caterpillar Earnings Rise; Results Miss Expectations
Heavy equipment and engine maker Caterpillar Inc. said its income rose to $551 million or $1.55 a share from $349 million or 97 cents a share a year earlier.For the year, sales and revenues rose to $30.25 billion, a 33% increase over 2003, the company said. Its $2.03 billion profit or $5.75 per share for 2004 was up 85% from $1.1 billion or $3.13 per share.
The results missed analysts’ expectations because of higher costs, Bloomberg reported. Caterpillar had $412 million in higher costs for the quarter from steel price increases and other materials, Bloomberg said.
“We’re disappointed with our cost structure, particularly steel-related costs and supply-chain inefficiencies due to lack of material availability,” Caterpillar Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jim Owens said.
The company forecast its 2005 profit would rise 25%, with sales rising 12% to 15%. Transport Topics
Old Dominion Freight Line Reports Record Income
Less-than-truckload carrier Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. said it earned a record $10.6 million or 43 cents a share for the fourth quarter, up from $7.7 million or 32 cents a share a year earlier.Revenue rose 28.8% to $224 million, the company said in a statement.
For the year the carrier earned $39 million, up 41.3% from $27.6 million for 2003 on revenue of $824 million, an increase of 23.4% from the previous year.
For the quarter ODFL achieved its growth due to increases of 16.4% in LTL tons and 12.8% in LTL shipments and a 5.5% increase in LTL revenue excluding fuel surcharges, Earl Congdon, chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
Old Dominion is ranked No. 27 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies. Transport Topics
USA Truck's Fourth-Quarter, Annual Income Rise
Truckload carrier USA Truck Inc. said Thursday its fourth-quarter profits rose year-over year to $3 million or 32 cents a share from $1.1 million or 12 cents a share in 2003.The company’s total quarterly revenue rose 23.8% to $95.5 million, from $77.1 million the year earlier.
For the year the company said it earned $7.4 million or 79 cents a share, up from $3.4 million or 36 cents a share in 2003.
USA Truck is ranked No. 64 on the 2004 Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies. Transport Topics
