Tontitown trucker sees quarter income jump to $5.4 million

P.A.M. Transportation Services Inc. reported record-breaking profits for its first quarter Wednesday, crediting diversification and better freight substitution capacity for some of the company's improvement.

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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Graphs showing P.A.M. Transportation Services, Inc. first quarter information.

The Tontitown-based trucking and logistics company reported net income of $5.4 million or 72 cents per share for the first quarter of 2015, compared to $1.4 million or 17 cents per share for the same period last year. Revenue stood at $99.5 million for the quarter ended March 31 compared to $97.8 million for the first quarter of 2014.

The company's first quarter results were released shortly before the market closed Wednesday. Shares closed at $63.68, down 48 cents or less than one percent in trading on the Nasdaq. Shares have traded as low as $21.22 and as high as $64.80 over the past year.

In a release, CEO Daniel Cushman said P.A.M., which hauls items connected with the automotive industry along with other items, will continue to be effected by scheduled plant shutdowns, but the company was in a good position to adjust as needed.

P.A.M.'s plan to expand the logistics side of the business is picking up, Cushman said, noting the revenue for the division for the first quarter of $10.2 million had doubled when compared with the first quarter for 2014.

He added that the company's stated goal to grow in 2015 will be challenging in the face of an extremely tight driver market. P.A.M. is reviewing and updating driver pay and its overall package with new equipment, and frequent time at home is helping reduce driver turnover, he said.

For the first quarter, P.A.M. saw total loads of 72,136, up 7.2 percent from 67,240 for the same period last year. The company had an average of 1,430 trucks for the period, down from 1,459 for the first quarter last year.

Revenue per total mile, before fuel surcharges, was $1.40, up from $1.36 for the first quarter of 2014. Revenue per truck per workday for the January through March period stood at $642, up 6 percent from $608 for the year pervious. Revenue per truck per week at $3,210 from $3,040 for the first three months of 2014.

Business on 04/23/2015

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