USA Truck Posts 4th Straight Loss
by July 19, 2012 10:08 am 96 views
Gains in USA Truck Inc.’s logistics and intermodal segments weren’t enough to turn a profit for the company in the second quarter.
Reporting before the stock markets opened, the Van Buren-based carrier reported a net loss of $3.49 million, or 34 cents per share, for the quarter that ended June 30, compared to earnings of $598,000, or 6 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
The loss surpassed the average estimated loss of 10 cents per share from four analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.
Revenue fell 4.6 percent to $103.52 million, excluding fuel surcharge revenue of $26.05 million.
USA Truck’s second-quarter loss narrowed compared to the last three quarters, president and CEO Cliff Beckham said in a news release.
“Bright spots included continued strong performance in our [Strategic Capacity Solutions] segment, improved base revenue per manned tractor and lower fuel expense,” he said. “Unfortunately, progress in these areas was hampered by lackluster performance in our trucking segment, where unmanned tractors and lack of network efficiency continued to diminish asset productivity.”
The company’s outstanding debt made up 50.9 percent of its balance sheet capitalization, up from 47.4 percent six months ago. That put USA Truck out of compliance with the financial covenants in its revolving credit agreement, the news release stated.
A waiver from the company’s bank group for noncompliance will be effective through Sept. 30 while USA Truck negotiates a new five-year revolving credit facility with a different lender, the release stated.
“We anticipate the new facility will afford us improved pricing and significantly greater financial flexibility,” the company said in the release.
In mid-morning trading Thursday on the Nasaq, USA Truck’s shares were up 9 cents, or 1.86 percent., at $4.94. Shares have traded between $4.47 and $12.41 in the past year.