USA Truck Revenue and Net Income Down in First Quarter 2017

USA Truck, Inc. (NASDAQ:USAK), a leading capacity solutions provider, has announced its financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2017, with both revenue and net income down.

For the quarter ended March 31, 2017, consolidated operating revenue was $101.7 million compared to $110.6 million for the prior-year period. Base revenue, which excludes fuel surcharge, was $89.8 million compared to $102.0 million for the 2016 period. The Company reported a net loss of ($4.9) million, or ($0.61) per diluted share for the first quarter 2017, compared to a ($1.8) million, or ($0.19) per diluted share, for the same quarter in 2016, on a 1.4 million (14.8%) decrease in average diluted shares outstanding. The Company’s first quarter 2017 operating ratio was 106.3%, compared to 102.1% in the 2016 quarter.
President and CEO James Reed commented, “Having now completed three months in the role as USA Truck’s CEO, I believe we are making important strides toward improving our Trucking segment’s productivity, and taking the right steps in building a lean and efficient company that can generate profits in the relative near-term and create sustainable value over time. My first priority has been, and will continue to be, returning USA Truck to profitability as quickly as possible.”

He cited the following objectives as essential:

• Building the leadership team;
• Trucking turnaround;
• Improving base revenue yield;
• Ongoing commitment to reducing costs; and
• Driving net revenue growth of USAT Logistics.

In terms of some specifics, Trucking operating revenue declined $5.4 million, or 7.2%, to $70.3 million for the first quarter of 2017 primarily due to approximately 11% fewer seated tractors and a 3% decrease in base revenue per loaded mile, offset by higher fuel surcharge revenue.

Further, in USAT Logistics, operating revenue decreased 10.1% year-over-year and 5.4% sequentially, while operating income decreased 63.7% year-over-year and 52.8% sequentially. The year-over-year change in operating income was the result of a 12.3% decrease in gross margin, combined with 6.6% less revenue per shipment and 3.8% fewer load

Category: Featured, General Update