USA Truck (USAK) Misses Q1 EPS by 20c, Revenues Miss

USA Truck (NASDAQ: USAK) reported Q1 EPS of $0.03, $0.20 worse than the analyst estimate of $0.23. Revenue for the quarter came in at $133.62 million versus the consensus estimate of $142.57 million.

• 2Q 2019 earnings per diluted share of $0.00 versus 2Q 2018 earnings per diluted share of $0.31
• 2Q 2019 adjusted earnings per diluted share(a) of $0.03 when adjusted for acquisition related intangible amortization versus 2Q 2018 adjusted earning per diluted share(a) of $0.31
• Recorded $0.6 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, net of tax, in charges related to the impairment of assets held for sale, the Arkansas flood, and accelerated compensation expense
• 2Q 2019 trucking operating revenue increased 12.6% to $96.5 million from $85.7 million in 2Q 2018

President and CEO James Reed commented, "The second quarter of 2019 was a challenge due to the softer freight environment, declining spot rates and unrealized bid awards. These factors combined to put pressure on our performance. We elected to procure additional freight volumes from the spot market in the trucking business to mitigate unrealized customer freight tenders. Despite increased spot market participation, we were able to maintain the gains made in past quarters in our base revenue per loaded mile, and further improved our deadhead percentage both year over year and sequentially. Declining spot rates experienced during the quarter also put pressure on USAT Logistics' volumes and compressed average revenue per load in that business.

Our competitive response was to implement the following initiatives that, we believe, will improve our operational and financial results as we move into the second half of 2019:

• Hiring additional sales personnel in the USAT Logistics segment to increase volume;
• Continuing the company-wide campaign to reduce fixed costs by 5-10%;
• Targeting customer campaigns to improve actualization of bid awards received; and
• Expanding the terminal footprint and decreasing dependence on outside repairs in high volume locations, while offering amenities to our drivers in those locations.

Even in the face of these challenges, the Company remained profitable in the quarter. USA Truck\'s recent past would suggest this is a \'function shift\' from prior results in down markets. We believe that staying profitable in this market demonstrates that the USA Truck self-help story is working to improve results."

For earnings history and earnings-related data on USA Truck (USAK) click here.

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