Universal(US:ULH)2024-10-24 20:21Financial Performance - Third Quarter 2024 Operating Revenues increased to $426.8 million, a 1.3% increase year-over-year[1] - Third Quarter 2024 Operating Income rose to $42.6 million, reflecting a 16.0% increase compared to the previous year[1] - Third Quarter 2024 Earnings Per Share reached $1.01, a 14.7% increase from $0.88 in the same quarter last year[1] - Net income for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, was $26.5 million, compared to $23.0 million for the same period in 2023, reflecting a 10.8% increase[11] - Net income for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, was $26,540 thousand, an increase from $23,047 thousand for the same period in 2023, representing a growth of approximately 10.8%[17] - For the thirty-nine weeks ended September 28, 2024, net income was $109,731 thousand, up from $71,488 thousand in the prior year, representing a growth of approximately 53.5%[17] Segment Performance - Contract Logistics segment Operating Revenues increased by 17.8% to $245.2 million, with an Operating Income of $45.6 million and an operating margin of 18.6%[4] - Intermodal segment Operating Revenues decreased by 11.8% to $77.6 million, resulting in an Operating Loss of $(1.1) million[5] - Trucking segment Operating Revenues decreased by 10.3% to $87.0 million, with Operating Income of $7.1 million and an operating margin of 8.2%[6] - The average operating revenue per load in the trucking segment increased to $2,222, up from $2,033 in the prior year, indicating a 9.3% improvement[13] - The company reported a total of 103,970 loads in the intermodal segment for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, down from 119,792 loads in the same period last year, a decrease of 13.3%[13] Cash and Debt Management - As of September 28, 2024, the company held cash and cash equivalents of $11.8 million and outstanding debt of $561.2 million[8] - The company’s debt increased to $557.5 million as of September 28, 2024, compared to $381.9 million at the end of 2023, representing a 46.1% rise[12] Operational Metrics - Total operating revenues for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, were $426.8 million, a slight increase from $421.3 million for the same period in 2023, representing a 1.4% growth[14] - Operating expenses for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, were $384.2 million, nearly unchanged from $384.5 million in the same period last year[11] - EBITDA for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, was $72,922 thousand, compared to $56,735 thousand for the same period in 2023, reflecting an increase of about 28.5%[17] - EBITDA for the thirty-nine weeks ended September 28, 2024, was $254,630 thousand, compared to $169,298 thousand for the same period in 2023, reflecting an increase of about 50.4%[17] - EBITDA margin for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, was 17.1%, compared to 13.5% for the same period in 2023, showing a significant improvement[15] Dividend Information - The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.105 per share, payable on January 2, 2025[7] - The company declared dividends of $0.105 per common share for both the current and prior year periods, maintaining consistency[11] Business Developments - The company ceased operations of its company-managed brokerage business, which reported pre-tax losses of approximately $8.6 million during the quarter[2] - Universal acquired Parsec, enhancing its contract logistics segment and allowing penetration into new verticals[3] Employee Metrics - The average number of value-added direct employees decreased to 5,189 from 5,439 year-over-year, a decline of 4.6%[13] Depreciation and Interest Expenses - Depreciation expense for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, was $25,536 thousand, up from $16,208 thousand in the prior year, showing a rise of approximately 57.7%[17] - Interest expense, net, increased to $7,416 thousand for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, from $6,495 thousand in the same period last year, marking a growth of about 14.2%[17] Tax Expenses - The company reported an income tax expense of $8,682 thousand for the thirteen weeks ended September 28, 2024, compared to $7,807 thousand for the same period in 2023, an increase of approximately 11.2%[17] EBITDA Limitations - The company emphasizes that EBITDA has limitations and should not be considered in isolation from GAAP measures, as it does not reflect cash expenditures or working capital needs[18] - The company will continue to rely primarily on GAAP results while using EBITDA and EBITDA margin as supplemental measures for performance evaluation[18]