USA Truck, Inc. Announces Operating Results
VAN BUREN, Ark.--Oct. 17, 2001--USA Truck, Inc. today announced record operating revenues of $64,867,371 for the quarter ended September 30, 2001, an increase of 16.8% from $55,532,933 for the same quarter of 2000. Net income increased 15.0% to $589,287 for the third quarter of 2001, compared to $512,357 for the third quarter of 2000. Fully-diluted net income per share for the quarter ended September 30, 2001 was $.06 compared to $.06 for the same quarter in 2000.For the nine-month period ended September 30, 2001, operating revenues increased 12.4% to $189,996,378, from $169,025,826 for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2000. Net income decreased 64.3% to $462,935 for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2001, compared to $1,298,039 for the same period in 2000. Fully-diluted net income per share for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2001 was $.05 compared to $.14 for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2000.
The following table summarizes the earnings information of USA
Truck, Inc. ("the Company"):
Quarter Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30, September 30,
-------------- -------------
2001 2000 2001 2000
----- ----- ----- ----
Operating
revenues $64,867,371 $55,532,933 $189,996,378 $169,025,826
Operating
expenses
and costs:
Salaries,
wages and
employee
benefits 27,349,174 22,481,959 81,082,402 68,134,094
Operations
and
maintenance 21,450,541 17,600,858 62,943,082 52,735,960
Operating
taxes and
licenses 856,117 1,003,875 2,962,626 3,197,401
Insurance
and claims 3,663,501 2,986,921 9,922,409 9,469,520
Communications
and utilities 669,335 722,640 2,029,995 2,123,618
Depreciation
and
amortization 6,530,735 6,452,810 19,912,967 20,000,254
Other 2,068,187 2,185,590 6,706,305 6,989,803
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Total operating
expenses
and costs 62,587,590 53,434,653 185,559,786 162,650,650
Operating
income 2,279,781 2,098,280 4,436,592 6,375,176
Other
expenses, net 1,313,491 1,255,588 3,678,924 4,240,243
Income (loss)
before income
taxes 966,290 842,692 757,668 2,134,933
Income tax
expense
(benefit) 377,003 330,335 294,733 836,894
Net income
(loss) $589,287 $512,357 $462,935 $1,298,039
============ ============ ============ ============
Earnings
(loss)
per share
(diluted) $0.06 $0.06 $0.05 $0.14
Average shares
outstanding
(diluted) 9,277,221 9,264,116 9,281,664 9,305,409
Key Operating Statistics:
Quarter Ended Nine Months Ended
September 30, September 30,
-------------- -------------
2001 2000 2001 2000
----- ----- ----- ----
Total miles
(Loaded & Empty) 53,860,515 46,373,200 159,439,682 143,171,626
Empty mile factor 9.48% 9.23% 9.68% 9.06%
Revenue per mile $1.204 $1.198 $1.192 $1.181
Average number
of tractors 1,779 1,738 1,771 1,736
Miles per tractor 30,276 26,682 90,028 82,472
Average miles per
tractor per week 2,403 2,118 2,369 2,170
Miles per trip 827 845 832 873
Number of shipments 58,979 49,786 173,049 149,079
Operating ratio 96.5% 96.2% 97.7% 96.2%
In comparing the financial results of the quarter ended September 30, 2001 to the quarter ended September 30, 2000, Robert M. Powell, Chairman, President and CEO of the Company, made the following statement:
"In addition to the third quarter's strong revenue performance,
the strongest in USA Truck's history, several positive trends are
developing on the cost-side of our business.
The cost of diesel fuel was down over $0.12 per gallon in the
third quarter of 2001 compared to the same quarter of 2000. Driver
recruiting and training costs for the third quarter of 2001
decreased 28.2% from the same quarter of 2000 despite hiring an
almost identical number of drivers. Part of that was because
during the third quarter of 2001 we experienced our best quarter
of driver retention since the first quarter of 1997.
Our October 1, 2000 driver pay increase made many of the above
savings possible, but they came at a price of approximately $2.2
million in the third quarter of this year alone. To address this,
Management developed a three-phase plan earlier this year to bring
driver wages more into line with historical levels while
maintaining the improvements made in the areas discussed in the
preceding paragraph. All three phases affect new hires only and
have no effect on existing drivers. Phase-I, effective in the
second quarter of 2001, capped the amount of experience paid to
newly hired drivers. Phase-II, effective in the third quarter of
2001, lowered the pay scale for drivers with less than one year of
industry experience in strategic points along that scale. Both of
these changes served to level off the growth of driver wages.
Phase-III, effective October 1, 2001, lowers the pay scale for
drivers with more than a year industry experience in strategic
points along that scale. Phase-III is designed to reduce driver
pay as a percent of revenue without substantially affecting the
strides we have made in the areas of safety, recruiting and
retention. The reduced pay scale remains very competitive among
industry peers.
To address to the slump in the used tractor market, the Company
will not trade any tractors in 2002. We will instead extend the
lives of the equipment that would normally have traded next year.
While this will result in increased depreciation and maintenance
costs in 2002, it eliminates the losses that would have occurred
upon trade. We will return to a normal trading schedule when
market conditions improve."
On October 17, 2001, the Company announced that its Board of Directors had authorized the Company to purchase up to 500,000 shares of its outstanding common stock over a three-year period dependent upon market conditions. Common stock purchases under the authorization may be made from time to time on the open market or in privately negotiated transactions at prices determined by the Chairman of the Board or President of the Company. This new authorization is effective immediately. The Board of Directors previously authorized the Company to purchase up to 500,000 shares of its common stock during the three-year period from September 1998 to September 2001. Under this previous authorization, the Company had repurchased 289,800 shares of common stock as of October 17, 2001.
This press release contains forward-looking statements. Among the key factors that are not within the Company's control and that may cause operating results to differ materially from those contemplated by such statements are increases in diesel prices, adverse weather conditions and the impact of increased rate competition and competition for qualified drivers, as well as various unforeseen events such as unusual levels of equipment failure or vehicle accident claims. Fluctuations in general economic conditions also may have a significant impact, as the Company's utilization rates are directly related to business levels of shippers in a variety of industries. See also the factors discussed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
USA Truck is a medium haul, common and contract carrier specializing in truckload quantities of general commodities. The Company operates in the 48 contiguous United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec and in Mexico through the gateway city of Laredo, Texas.