Marten Transport posts 57.9% increase in 3Q net income

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Marten Transport

Marten Transport on Tuesday, Oct. 19, reported net income of $5.5 million for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, a 57.9 percent increase from $3.5 million for the third quarter of 2009. The third-quarter earnings also improved sequentially from 2010 second-quarter net income of $5.2 million. For the nine-month period of 2010, net income increased to $14.5 million compared with $12.0 million for the same nine-month period of 2009.

Operating revenue, consisting of revenue from truckload and logistics operations, was $128.7 million in the third quarter of 2010 compared with $129.4 million in the 2009 quarter. Operating revenue increased to $380.3 million in the nine-month period of 2010 from $377.2 million in the first nine months of 2009. Operating revenue, net of fuel surcharges, decreased 3.4 percent to $109.8 million in the 2010 quarter from $113.7 million in the 2009 quarter and decreased 3.8 percent to $325.2 million in the 2010 nine-month period from $338.1 million in the 2009 nine-month period.

“We continue to be encouraged by our increased profitability,” said Randolph L. Marten, chairman and chief executive officer of the Mondovi, Wis.-based company. “Our transformation into a multifaceted business model – the growth of our logistics business and focus on expansion of our regional operations throughout the country – continues to drive positive results.”

Marten said the company’s logistics revenue continues to expand as a percentage of its revenue. In the third quarter of 2010, logistics revenue, net of intermodal fuel surcharges, grew $1.1 million over the 2009 quarter, and for the 2010 nine-month period grew $7.1 million over the 2009 nine-month period. “Our regional operations continue to thrive, contributing to a 13.2 percent increase in our average truckload revenue, net of fuel surcharges, per tractor per week, in this year’s third quarter over last year’s third quarter, and a 3.8 percent increase over this year’s second quarter,” he said. “We have increased our regional operations to 48.2 percent of our truckload fleet as of September 30, 2010, from 21.7% as of a year earlier.”