Expeditors International of Washington’s first-quarter profit rose 5% from a year ago, and the company said it sees “cause for optimism” for the rest of the year.

Third-party logistics provider Interstate Logistics Group said it has launched an automated freight quotation service called QuoteMyTruckload.com.

Penske Automotive said its first-quarter income and earnings per share were the highest in its history, while Penske Logistics announced it won a bid to manage a BMW distribution center in Pennsylvania.

Canadian logistics company Wheels Group said its fourth-quarter earnings before interest and taxes rose during a shortened reporting period.

Transportation software company 3Gtms said it has merged with Transite Technology, a logistics software provider. Terms were not disclosed.

Penske Logistics said Tuesday it has completed a multimillion-dollar upgrade to its data center that serves all of its supply chain customers.

The U.S. Army has removed all specialty and flatbed freight from its outsourced logistics Defense Transportation Coordination Initiative program because those freight categories have not produced the anticipated cost savings, Transport Topics has learned.

Ceva Group, an international logistics service company based in the Netherlands, said its profit, excluding one-time items and other costs, fell 22% in 2012, hurt by customers’ shift of freight to less-expensive ocean shipping.

Lineage Logistics said it has acquired Seattle Cold Storage and its facilities at Algona, Wash., and the Port of Tacoma, Wash. Terms were not disclosed.

UTi Worldwide reported a fourth-quarter loss of $142.8 million, or $1.38 per share, from a profit of $12.4 million, or 12 cents, a year earlier.