P.A.M. Posts Profitable Quarter, But Ends Year In The Red
by February 10, 2012 8:56 am 94 views
Trucking firm P.A.M. Transportation reversed a string of quarterly losses with a small fourth quarter profit, but still finished 2011 in the red.
The Tontitown-based dry goods hauler reported fourth quarter net income of $133,037, or $0.02 diluted earnings per share. Revenues rose sharply in part due to fuel surcharges to $89.39 million during the quarter.
For the year, P.A.M. suffered a net loss of $2,857,371, or $0.32 per diluted earnings per share. Revenue for the full year rose to $359.24 million. One year ago, P.A.M. posted a $654,729 net loss on revenue of $331.99 million.
CEO Daniel Cushman was a bit philosophical about the negative results.
“The focus of the company since my arrival in July 2009 has been to build a sustainable profit model. While this sounds basic and fundamental, the execution of the concept requires discipline and perseverance, and often means forgoing short term profit opportunities in favor of investing in the long-term sustainable profit plan,” he said. “The evolution of our customer base continues to be one of the most evident success stories representing the result of our efforts.”
Cushman said that the company’s top 5 customers comprise 39% of P.A.M.’s revenue, a 17% decrease from the previous year. The trucking firm has been strategically trying to diversify its customer base after years of relying heavily on clients in the auto sector.
“While achievement of this diversification provides the obvious benefit of protecting us from dependency on any single customer, it has also unencumbered us from leverage that prevented us from pursuing pricing that more fairly compensates us for our services, it has provided a wider array of freight origins and destinations to choose from, and it has reduced the impact of seasonal plant shutdowns,” Cushman said. “The result of these improvements can be seen in the 4.6% growth in our rate per total mile to $1.38 for the fourth quarter 2011 compared to $1.32 for the same quarter in 2010, and an increase in truck utilization over the same period. ”
P.A.M. shares closed trading on Thursday (Feb. 9) at $10.76. The company’s stock has traded between $9.03 and $13.14 per share during the past 52 weeks.