Marten posts 22.2% increase in 4Q profit

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Marten Transport

Marten Transport on Tuesday, Jan. 25, reported a 22.2 percent increase in net income to $5.2 million for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, from $4.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2009. For 2010, net income increased 21.4 percent to $19.7 million from $16.3 million for 2009.

Operating revenue, consisting of revenue from truckload and logistics operations, increased to $136.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2010 from $128.7 million in the 2009 quarter. In 2010, operating revenue increased to $516.9 million from $505.9 million in 2009. Operating revenue, net of fuel surcharges, increased 3.3 percent to $115.8 million in the 2010 quarter from $112.1 million in the 2009 quarter and decreased 2.0 percent to $441.0 million in 2010 from $450.1 million in 2009. Operating revenue included fuel surcharges of $20.8 million for the fourth quarter of 2010, compared with $16.6 million in the 2009 quarter, and $75.9 million for 2010, compared with $55.7 million for 2009.

Operating expenses as a percentage of operating revenue, with both amounts net of fuel surcharge revenue, improved to 92.2 percent for the fourth quarter of 2010 from 92.8 percent for the fourth quarter of 2009, and improved to 92.0 percent for 2010 from 93.5 percent for 2009. Marten said its 2010 ratio was its best since 2006.

“We are pleased to report increased profitability, in spite of rising fuel prices,” said Randolph Marten, chairman and chief executive officer of the Mondovi, Wis.-based company. “Our ongoing transformation into a multifaceted business model continues to produce positive results through its focus on growth in our intermodal, brokerage, regional and international operations.”

Marten said both the brokerage and intermodal components of the company’s logistics segment contributed to improved revenue. Logistics revenue, net of intermodal fuel surcharges, grew by $4.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2010 over the 2009 quarter, and by $12.1 million in 2010 over 2009. The increase in logistics revenue in the fourth quarter of 2010 was driven by a 15.9 percent increase in intermodal revenue, a 26.5 percent increase in brokerage services and a 12.8 percent increase in the revenue associated with the company’s 45 percent interest in MW Logistics, a third-party provider of logistics services.

“Our expanding regional operations contributed to a 5.9 percent fourth-quarter increase in our average truckload revenue, net of fuel surcharges, per tractor per week over last year’s fourth quarter, and a 5.2 percent increase in 2010 over 2009,” Marten said. “We have increased our regional operations to 51.8 percent of our truckload fleet as of December 31, 2010, from 25.9 percent as of a year earlier.”