USA Truck narrows 3rd-quarter losses

USA Truck Inc. on Thursday reported narrowed third-quarter losses compared with the same period a year ago.

The Van Buren-based trucker said it incurred a net loss of $600,000 for the quarter, or a 6 cent loss per share, compared with a net loss of $6.1 million, or 59 cents per share, in third-quarter 2012.

Revenue rose to $113.9 million for the quarter that ended Sept. 30, a 13.5 percent increase from the 100.3 million generated in the year-ago period, the company said.

"The continued, accelerating improvement in our results clearly illustrates the rapid progress we're making in our turnaround," President and Chief Executive Officer John Simone said in a statement. "The third quarter of 2013 marked our fourth consecutive quarter of substantially improved operating and bottom-line results. Our increased cash flow enabled us to pay down debt for the first time since the fourth quarter of 2011."

The trucker has been the subject of a takeover play by Phoenix-based Knight Transportation Inc., which has increased its stake in USA Truck to more than 1.3 million shares, or 12.4 percent of the Arkansas firm's common stock.

In August, Knight offered USA Truck $9 per share for all its outstanding shares, an offer valued at $242 million that USA Truck rejected. Both companies have said they have devised plans for USA Truck that are in the best interests of the company's shareholders.

If Knight reaches 15 percent ownership in the company, USA Truck can enact a shareholder-rights plan, colloquially known as a "poison pill," designed to discourage further takeover attempts.

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