SCS Transportation Earnings Announcement
- Another Stock Handily Beating the Market
10/18/03
SCS Transportation, up 62% (an annualized rate of 81%) since
we recommended the stock ten months ago, released their earnings
report this week. Earnings per share for the third quarter
of 2003 were up 25.9%. The company's press release follows:
10/16/03
(KANSAS CITY, Mo.)
SCS Transportation, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCST) today reported revenue
of $211.5 million in the third quarter of 2003, up 5.2 percent
from $201.2 million in the prior-year period. Operating income
in the third quarter rose 37.8 percent to $11.2 million, from
$8.1 million a year earlier.
Net income increased 28.1 percent to $5.1
million for the quarter, from $4.0 million in the third quarter
of 2002. Earnings per share for the third quarter of 2003
were $0.34, up 25.9 percent from $0.27 a year earlier. “As
we conclude our first year as an independent company, we are
pleased to again report improvements in revenue, operating
income and earnings,” said Bert Trucksess, chairman, president
and chief executive officer of SCS Transportation. “Moving
into our second year, we are encouraged by signs of an improving
economy, that along with our operating initiatives, point
toward continuing upside opportunities.”
Segment Results
Third-quarter revenues, operating income and less-than-truckload
(LTL) volumes increased for both operating companies, Saia
and Jevic, versus the prior year quarter. Yields remained
relatively stable but continued to reflect competitive pricing
conditions in the industry. Revenue at Saia was $134.3 million
in the third quarter, compared with $127.6 million a year
earlier. Excluding fuel surcharge, Saia revenue per day was
up 3.9 percent. Third-quarter operating income for Saia was
$8.1 million, up 24.2 percent from $6.5 million a year earlier.
Saia’s third-quarter operating ratio was 94.0 percent, an
improvement from 94.9 percent a year earlier.
Saia continued to grow its presence in key
markets, increasing LTL tonnage per day 4.0 percent from the
third quarter of 2002. LTL revenue per hundredweight, excluding
fuel surcharge, dropped 0.3 percent from the prior-year quarter.
“Saia once again delivered improved profitability
versus a year ago by adding value for customers and improving
capacity utilization, while effectively managing costs and
the mix of business,” Trucksess said. “Despite an already
strong service product, Saia recently improved service standards
by one day on over 11 million zip code pairs, reflecting our
commitment to best-in-class service and continuous improvement.”
At Jevic, third-quarter revenue was $77.2
million, versus $73.6 million a year earlier. Revenue per
day, excluding fuel surcharge, rose 3.5 percent. Jevic operating
income was $3.8 million versus $1.9 million in the third quarter
of 2002. The current quarter included $0.9 million in favorable
out-of-period reserve adjustments, while the prior-year quarter
had $0.9 million in unfavorable out-of-period reserve adjustments.
Jevic’s third-quarter operating ratio was 95.1 percent compared
to 97.5 percent a year earlier.
Total revenue per hundredweight for Jevic,
excluding fuel surcharge, improved 2.5 percent, due primarily
to an increasing mix of higher-yielding LTL tonnage. LTL revenue
per hundredweight was down 1.5 percent year-over-year but
has been relatively stable during 2003.
“Less-than-truckload tonnage for Jevic increased
in the quarter, and the company is making progress on improving
operating performance. Despite a tight labor market, Jevic
advanced its driver recruiting, which along with continuing
improvements in manpower planning, helped reduce higher cost
purchased transportation," Trucksess said.
Net holding company operating expenses were
$0.7 million in the quarter versus $0.3 million a year earlier.
Comparison to the third quarter of 2002 is not meaningful
because public-company operations commenced with the October
1, 2002, spin-off of SCST. Interest expense in the quarter
was $2.4 million, up from $1.2 million a year earlier, as
a result of the capital structure created with the spin-off.
Outlook
Subject to forward-looking risk factors, management expects
2003 earnings per share for the fourth quarter to be in a
range of $0.25 to $0.31 and expects earnings per share for
the full year to be in a range of $0.94 to $1.00. These estimates
are based on company-specific business trends and initiatives,
as well as economic assumptions for the remainder of the year.
SCS Transportation, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCST)
is a trucking transportation company providing regional
and interregional less-than-truckload and selected truckload
(TL) service solutions to more than
71,000 customers across the United States.
Its operating subsidiaries are Saia, based
in Duluth, Ga.; and Jevic, based in Delanco, N.J. Headquartered
in Kansas City, Mo., SCST has approximately 7,500 employees
nationwide.
The Securities and Exchange Commission encourages
companies to disclose forward-looking information so that
investors can better understand the future prospects of a
company and make informed investment decisions.
This news release contains these types of
statements, which are “forward-looking statements” within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. Words such as “anticipate,” “estimate,” “expect,”
“project,” “intend,” “plan,” “predict,” “believe” and similar
words or expressions are intended to identify forward-looking
statements. We use such forward-looking statements regarding
our future financial condition and results of operations and
our business operations in this release. All forward-looking
statements reflect the present expectation of future events
of our management and are subject to a number of important
factors, risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those described in
the forward-looking statements. These factors and risks include,
but are not limited to, general economic conditions; labor
relations; cost and availability of qualified drivers; governmental
regulations, including but not limited to Hours of Service,
engine emissions and Homeland Security; cost and availability
of fuel; inclement weather; competitive initiatives and pricing
pressures; self-insurance claims and other expense volatility;
and other financial, operational and legal risks and uncertainties
detailed from time to time in the Company’s SEC filings.
SCS TRANSPORTATION INVESTOR CONTACT:
Greg Drown
SCS Transportation, Inc.
816-714-5906
gdrown@scstransportation.com
SCS TRANSPORTATION MEDIA CONTACT:
Dick Johnson
Johnson Strategic Communications Inc.
913-649-8885
dick@johnsonstrategic.com
Source: SCS Transportation. Go here
for more information.
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