ArcBest Corp. Has First Profitable First Quarter in Seven Years
ArcBest Corp. recorded the first profitable first quarter in seven years, reversing a year-earlier loss with help from less-than-truckload and non-asset businesses.
Net income was $745,000, or 3 cents per share, compared with a $5.2 million loss, or 20 cents in the 2014 period. Revenue increased 6.1% to $613.3 million. Profit excluding pension costs was 6 cents per share.
At the ABF Freight LTL unit, profit before interest and taxes was $43,000, compared with a $12.2 million loss the year before, as revenue increased 3% to $441.2 million. Non-asset units profit on that basis fell about 40% to $2.8 million despite a 16% revenue increase to $183.7 million.
“As productivity and pricing improved, ABF Freight reversed last year’s first-quarter losses,” ArcBest CEO Judy McReynolds said. “The emerging businesses contributed their largest revenue portion yet to ArcBest, at 29% of total consolidated revenue.”
LTL revenue per 100 pound of freight rose 3.7%, and tonnage fell 1.3%, matching the trend at every other publicly traded carrier in the sector except Old Dominion Freight Line.
Profit margins fell at the non-asset businesses because of “demand softness and lower rates in the expedited market resulting from more readily available truckload capacity versus last year, and a shorter length of haul on new Panther business,” the statement said. Higher claims and health care costs raised expenses.
Within the non-asset unit, Panther and Fleet Net profit fell, the brokerage unit’s results improved and the loss was narrowed at the household goods business.
ArcBest ranks No. 13 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.
