PAMT CEO Joe Vitiritto resigns, top shareholder to be interim CEO

Joe Vitiritto, president and CEO of PAMT Corp., formerly P.A.M. Transportation Services Inc., will resign June 27 for family reasons after nearly five years with the Tontitown-based carrier, according to a Monday (May 12) federal filing.

Matthew Moroun, the company’s board chairman, will be the interim president and CEO from June 27 until the position is filled, according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Vitiritto notified the company of his resignation on May 8, the date of the company’s annual shareholders meeting. He joined the company as president and CEO in August 2020.

“Mr. Moroun will continue to serve as chairman of the board and will not receive any additional compensation for his service as interim president and CEO,” the filing noted. “Mr. Vitiritto will remain in his current role as president and CEO and a director of the company until his resignation date.”

Moroun, 52, has been a company director since 1992 and board chairman since 2007. He’s chairman and president of a diversified holding company in Warren, Mich., and chairman of an insurance and real estate holding company based in Sterling Heights, Mich. He owns or controls other privately-held businesses in transportation services and real estate acquisition, development and management. He previously served as interim president and CEO of PAMT from May 2020 to August 2020 after former president and CEO Daniel Cushman retired in May 2020.

According to the company’s most recent proxy statement, Moroun owns 73.45% of company shares.

On May 8, company shareholders reelected nine directors, including Moroun and Vitiritto, to serve until the next annual shareholders meeting. However, the May 12 filing shows Vitiritto will remain in his roles, including as a director, until June 27. Shareholders also appointed Grant Thornton LLP as the company’s independent registered public accounting firm for 2025.

On April 23, PAMT reported a net loss of $8.14 million and a 14.9% revenue decline in the first quarter. Last year, the company had losses in the second and fourth quarters, with its fourth-quarter loss exceeding $31 million. Vitiritto, who typically provided a statement in the company’s quarterly earnings report, did not give a statement in the report. It marked the second consecutive quarter without a statement.

Shares of PAMT (NASDAQ: PAMT) were trading Wednesday (May 14) at $13.66, down $1.43 or 9.44%. In the past 52 weeks, the stock has ranged between $11.01 and $23.70.