Express-1 Expedited Solutions — one of the nation’s top 10 providers of ground expedited services for the manufacturing, logistics, service, automotive and other industries — on Thursday, Feb. 22, reported net income of $3.9 million on revenues of about $42.2 million for the 2006 fiscal year, compared with a net loss of about $5.8 million on revenues of about $39.8 million for the prior year.
For the fourth quarter of 2006, revenues increased to $10.7 million from $9.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2005. The company’s GAAP net income for the fourth quarter of 2006 was $1,595,000, which compares with a GAAP net income of $597,000 for the fourth quarter last year. The 2006 number includes about $1.1 million in one-time tax benefits.
“Express-1 continued to outperform the expedite industry this quarter on the top line and in other key areas, including growth in fleet size and loaded miles,” said Michael Welch, president and chief executive officer of Buchanan, Mich.-based Express-1. “We continued to execute successfully on our strategy during the quarter, increasing our capacity by further expanding the size of our fleet, and growing our market share through new accounts and additional business from existing accounts.
“As a result, our Express-1 average fleet size increased 29 percent from the fourth quarter of 2005, utilization remained strong, and our core Express-1 business generated a 12 percent increase in revenue compared to the fourth quarter of 2005,” Welch said. “At the same time, our Evansville contract-dedicated operations remained revenue-neutral in the fourth quarter of 2006 compared to the fourth quarter of 2005. With all of 2006 now complete, we are pleased that we were able to achieve our guidance for the full year.”
Looking ahead to 2007, Welch said Express-1 believes the momentum it generated with its additional fleet capacity and customers will drive further growth. “Our immediate goal is to be one of the largest ground expediters in the country,” Welch said. “In order to accomplish our goal, we will drive growth by adding to our customer base and recruiting additional sales force. We are confident in our business model and believe that, by remaining conservative and goal-focused in our approach, we will be able to continue delivering on our targets for growth and profitability.”
