Universal Logistics Buoyed by Record Revenue, Strong Profits
Universal Logistics Holdings reported first-quarter net income of $10.4 million, or 37 cents per share, a rise of 147% from $4.3 million reported for the first quarter a year ago.
The logistics firm and truckload carrier said its $335.1 million in operating revenue in the quarter was the highest in its history and nearly 18% higher than the $284.4 million reported a year ago.
The company’s transportation group reported income from operations of $10.1 million, up 59% from $6.4 million. Revenue rose 16%, to $206.1 million from $178.3 million. The logistics group saw income from operations of $7.4 million, a 77% jump from $4.2 million. Its operating revenue was $128.6 million, up 22% from $105.7 million.
Warren, Mich.-based Universal Logistics provides trucking and logistics services in the United States, Canada, Colombia and Mexico. It operates truckload, brokerage, intermodal, dedicated and value-added divisions.
For the firm’s operating divisions, revenue from value-added services rose to $105.1 million, up nearly 12% from a year ago, with the division receiving more than $6 million in revenue from operations supporting the heavy-truck market.
Brokerage services revenue rose 35% to $78,159 as average operating revenue per load jumped about 28% to $1,648. Dedicated services revenues rose 13%, to $28.1 million from $24.9 million.
Truckload services reported operating revenues of $77.2 million, up 8% from $71.5 million. The number of loads hauled dropped more than 8% to 72,966, but that was offset in part by a 15.2% rise in average operating revenue per load, excluding fuel surcharges.
The intermodal services division reported revenue of $46.6 million, up nearly 30% from $35.9 million a year ago. Recently acquired Fore Transportation contributed $5.9 million to the revenue. Universal paid $34.9 million in cash for Fore in February. The number of loads hauled came in at 94,029, up from 83,553, while the average operating revenue per load, excluding fuel surcharges, rose 13%, to $439 from $388.
“While the profitability generated by our operating subsidiaries is not uniform, our improved execution is driving significantly improved results,” CEO Jeff Rogers said.
Universal ranks No. 32 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest for-hire carriers in North America. It ranks No. 27 on the Transport Topics Top 50 Logistics Companies in North America.
