Marten Transport Ltd. on Tuesday, July 20, reported a 15.2 percent increase in net income to $5.2 million for the second quarter ended June 30 from $4.5 million for the second quarter of 2009. The second-quarter earnings also improved sequentially from 2010 first-quarter net income of $3.9 million. For the six-month period of 2010, net income increased to $9.1 million compared with $8.5 million for the same six-month period of 2009.
Operating revenue, consisting of revenue from truckload and logistics operations, increased to $125.9 million in the second quarter of 2010 from $125.8 million in the 2009 quarter and increased to $251.7 million in the six-month period of 2010 from $247.8 million in the 2009 six-month period. The increases primarily were due to increased fuel surcharge revenue, which reflects higher fuel prices, and increases in logistics revenue.
Operating revenue, net of fuel surcharges, decreased 5.6 percent to $106.9 million in the 2010 quarter from $113.2 million in the 2009 quarter and decreased 4.0 percent to $215.4 million in the 2010 six-month period from $224.4 million in the 2009 six-month period. Operating revenue included fuel surcharges of $19.0 million for the second quarter of 2010 compared with $12.6 million in the 2009 quarter, and $36.3 million for the 2010 six-month period compared with $23.4 million for the 2009 six-month period.
The operating ratio (operating expenses as a percentage of operating revenue) improved to 92.7 percent for the second quarter of 2010 from 94.0 percent for the second quarter of 2009 and improved to 93.6 percent for the 2010 six-month period from 94.0 percent for the 2009 six-month period. Operating expenses as a percentage of operating revenue, with both amounts net of fuel surcharge revenue, improved to 91.4 percent for the second quarter of 2010 from 93.4 percent for the second quarter of 2009 and improved to 92.5 percent for the 2010 six-month period from 93.4 percent for the 2009 six-month period.
“We are encouraged by our solid results,” said Randolph L. Marten, chairman and chief executive officer of the Mondovi, Wis.-based company. “We continue to benefit from the advances in our transformation into a multifaceted business model, focusing on expansion of our regional operations throughout the country, the growth of our logistics business and our fuel efficiency and cost-control measures.”
Marten said the company continues to decrease operating expenses in the face of increasing fuel prices through aggressive cost controls. “We are confident that our ongoing transformation into a multifaceted business model will continue to work to our advantage, regardless of the economic environment,” he said.
