October 20, 2005 4:15 PM, EDT

UPS Reports Earnings, Revenue Gain in Third Quarter

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PS Inc. reported Thursday that its third-quarter net income rose to $953 million or 86 cents a share, up from $890 million or 78 cents a year earlier.

Revenue rose 18% to $10.6 billion, the company said in a statement. UPS is ranked No. 1 on the Transport Topics 100 listing of the largest U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.

The growth was led by company operations in China, where shipments climbed 34%, UPS said.

International package revenue rose 14.5% to $1.92 billion, operating profit climbed 19.5% to $318 million and export volume grew by 12.5%.

U.S. domestic package revenue grew 6.9% to $7.03 billion. Operating profit rose 18% to $1.11 billion. Pricing remained firm, UPS said.

International package revenue rose 22.7% to $2 billion, with operating profit rising 41.3% to $397 million. Export volume grew 18.2%, led by Asian export volumes of 39.5%.

UPS’ supply chain and freight segment’s revenue rose 130% to $1.6 billion, primarily from its acquisition of Menlo Worldwide Forwarding last December, the company said.

UPS should meet its expectation of an 18% to 20% gain in earnings per share for the full year, Chief Financial Officer Scott Davis said in a statement. Last year's EPS were an adjusted $2.90.

For 2006, the company expects an increase in EPS of 11% to 16%, based on continued growth in the small-package market.