J.B. HUNT SEES BETTER 3RD-QUARTER EARNINGS

J.B. HUNT SEES BETTER 3RD-QUARTER EARNINGS    J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. reported a three-fold increase in net earnings for the third quarter, to $16.8 million, but warned that it could not predict the impact of the recent West Coast port shutdown on its fourth-quarter results.
   Third quarter net earnings jumped to $16.8 million compared with 2001 third quarter earnings of $4.5 million. “The earnings represent the highest recorded third-quarter profits in the company’s history,” the company said.
   Operating revenue for the latest quarter was $583 million, up 9 percent. During the third quarter, revenue of the company’s truck segment was up 2.4 percent, while the intermodal segment revenue rose 6.7 percent over the comparable period of 2001. Dedicated segment revenue increased 19.3 percent over the same period.
   Earnings improved significantly in the latest quarter thanks to an increase in the operating profit ratio of J.B. Hunt’s truck segment.
   However, increasing fuel prices, net of higher fuel surcharge revenues, and higher insurance premiums, negatively impacted earnings.
   “Significant increases in operating costs such as insurance, equipment, labor and maintenance of aging fleets for the truckload, dedicated services, and intermodal industries will continue to require increasing freight rates to foster a healthy transportation system,” the company said.
   J.B. Hunt said it will have a shortened time frame to move imported merchandise during the fourth quarter because of the recent lockout of West Coast dockworkers during the first part of October.
   “The impact to the company has been minimal to-date and the company is unable to predict what the ultimate impact, if any, will be during the fourth quarter of 2002,” it said.
   The effect of holiday shutdowns, fewer working trucks between Christmas and New Year’s Day, and the drop-off in demand that typically occurs after Dec. 15, but which may be extended by the late start in imports, “add additional complexity to predicting earnings for this year’s fourth quarter,” it added.