March 3 Earnings Roundup: TransForce, Accuride, Clean Energy

TransForce Inc. more than tripled fourth-quarter net income, Accuride Corp. reported a fourth-quarter loss but said revenue improved on higher sales and Clean Energy Fuels Corp. posted a fourth-quarter profit.

TransForce

TransForce increased income to C$43.2 million ($38 million) as the freight and package company benefited from acquisitions and organic growth.

TransForce, which ranks No. 9 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers, raised revenue 36% to C$1.97 billion. Earnings per share rose to 41 cents from 13 cents at the Montreal-based company, whose acquisitions included No. 49 Contrans Group, a Canadian carrier. That purchase was completed in November.

In addition to acquisition benefits, CEO Alain Bedard said in a statement, “We expect our U.S. operations to benefit from a robust economy.” In Canada, he said, “A weaker currency should create momentum to the manufacturing sector.”

Profit before interest and taxes more than tripled to C$28.8 million in the truckload sector, with help from Transport America, which was acquired last year.

Package and courier profitability rose 40% on the same basis to C$26.6 million. Less-than-truckload earnings before interest and taxes reached $14.7 million, up from $2.2 million.

Truckload revenue more than doubled to C$321.3 million, while LTL rose nearly 50% to C$201.9 million. Package and courier revenue increased 3% to C$307.0 million.

Accuride

Accuride reported a net loss of $5.1 million, or 10 cents per share, compared with net income of $1.9 million, or 4 cents, a year ago. Revenue rose 19.4% to $172.8 million.

Operating income was $3.7 million for the quarter, compared with an operating loss of $1.7 million a year ago, the company said March 3.

Accuride’s full-year loss narrowed to $2.3 million, or 5 cents per share, from $38.3 million, or 81 cents, a year ago. Revenue improved 9.9% to $705.2 million.

CEO Rick Dauch said the company expects a stronger 2015.

“As favorable freight volumes and fuel prices have enabled many fleets to expand their operations, truck and trailer production levels have climbed to the best we’ve seen in a decade,” he said.

“Accuride has sufficient, capable capacity in place to meet and sustain this demand, grow our share and respond quickly when volumes increase,” Dauch said in a statement.

Clean Energy Fuels

Clean Energy Fuels reported a fourth-quarter profit, turning around a year-ago loss, and said its gallons of natural gas fuel jumped for both the period and full year.

Net income was $1.3 million, or 1 cent per share, compared with a loss of $32.3 million, or 34 cents, a year ago. Full-year net loss widened to $89.7 million, or 96 cents per share, from $67 million, or 71 cents.

Revenue rose 55% to $132.1 million for the quarter and 21.6% for the year, to $428.9 million, the Newport Beach, California-based company said.

Gallons of fuel delivered jumped 30% in the quarter to 72.4 million, while full-year deliveries increased 23.6% to 265.1 million gallons.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization was $37.2 million for the quarter, up from a loss of $1.8 million a year ago. Full-year EBITDA declined 29% to $23.7 million.

“The enactment of the alternative fuel excise tax credit at the end of 2014 was a nice bump to our results [and]  . . . will also be a positive cash inflow in 2015,” CEO Andrew Littlefair said.

“The energy sector remains under pressure, but we are able to continue to offer a cleaner fuel and maintain our economic advantage, albeit at a slightly smaller spread,” he said in a statement.