USA Truck names new CFO, ties part of contract to having a residence in the Fort Smith area

James Reed has been named chief financial officer for Van Buren-based USA Truck, replacing Michael Borrows who resigned suddenly in May with no explanation given by the company.

Reed will be the third CFO for the company in a little over two years. Borrows in August 2014 had replaced Clif Beckham in the CFO role. Reed is set to begin the new job on Nov. 1, and his contract includes a stock vesting plan that releases half the value of the stock upon his residency in the Fort Smith/Van Buren area.

Reed joins USA Truck from Interstate Distributor Company, a Tacoma, Wash.-based trucking company operating in the U.S. and western Canada, where he served as CFO of Interstate (an asset-based trucking business) and as president of its subsidiary Interstate Distributor Logistics. Reed joined Interstate in 2012 and served for a time as its senior vice president, sales, with full accountability for the company’s revenue growth and strategic account development.

“We are delighted to have James join our team. We expect his unique blend of experience in trucking, logistics, finance and business development to be of great assistance in accelerating our execution of the various initiatives underway that will enhance USA Truck’s operations and financial results,” USA Truck President and CEO Randy Rogers said in a statement issued Thursday (Oct. 27) afternoon. “Over more than two decades and in many different industries and disciplines, James has proven his ability to partner with operations to drive operational excellence and deliver consistent results. His extensive experience includes 15 years of leading finance in public companies, including as CFO of Mikron Industries, where he smoothly integrated a family-held private company into a public organization.”

Prior to joining Interstate Reed was senior director, finance and division CFO for EMC Corporation, where he led the integration of Isilon Systems’ financial systems and financial reporting with EMC’s. Reed began his career with Intel Corporation in 1997 after earning a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree from Brigham Young University.

Reed’s employment contract includes $150,000 in USA Truck shares, with half vesting when he moves to the area and the remainder vesting on June 30, 2017.

Reed steps into the management team at time when the company is working through several initiatives to improve financial performance. For the first six months of the year, the company posted a loss of $3.153 million, down from the $4.405 million gain in the same period of 2015. Revenue for the first half totaled $220.506 million, down 17.2% compared to the $266.46 million in the 2015 period.

The company’s trucking segment posted a first half operating loss of $7.102 million compared to a $4.105 million gain in the same period of 2015. Operating revenue for the division in the first half of the year was $151.206 million, below the $189.214 million in the same period of 2015.

The USAT Logistics division posted operating income of $4.182 million in the first half, below the $6.235 million in the same period of 2015. Operating revenue in the first half was $69.3 million, down from $77.246 million in the same period of 2015.

In the Aug. 3 second quarter earnings report, Rogers said cutting workforce and truck fleet size were part of the plan to boost the bottom line. The company is set to announce third quarter earnings on Nov. 4. The consensus estimate among the four analysts who cover the thinly traded stock is earnings per share of 9 cents, well below the 43 cents per share in the third quarter of 2015.

USA Truck, a truckload shipping and logistics company, ended 2015 on a high note. The company pulled together two consecutive years of growth, with full year 2015 net income reaching $11.069 million, up 76.1% compared to 2014 net income.

USA Truck shares (NASDAQ: USAK) closed Thursday (Oct. 27) at $8.35, down 14 cents. During the past 52 weeks the share price has ranged from a $21.46 high to an $8.04 low.