Crowley Maritime’s third-quarter net income falls 52%

Crowley Maritime’s third-quarter net income falls 52%    The net income of Crowley Maritime Corp. fell by 52 percent in the third quarter, to $7.6 million, as its liner shipping, oil transportation and marine services activities returned poorer operating results despite stable revenues.
   The latest quarterly income compares with a net income of $15.7 million in the third quarter of 2002.
   Oakland-based Crowley, the parent company of Crowley Liner Services, reported a group operating income of $18.6 million for the third quarter, down from $29.5 million in the same quarter of 2002.
   Group operating revenues for the quarter increased marginally, to $276.1 million, from $275.1 million in the third quarter in 2002.
   Crowley said that the small increase was primarily attributed to an increase in fuel prices for the company’s resale fuel, an increase in revenues due to the acquisition of transportation management companies specializing in the apparel industry; and an increase in container and non-container volume and average revenue per TEU. Crowley also reported a decrease in revenue from its activities in the Sakhalin island of Russia.
   Interest expense for the third quarter increased by 24 percent, to $5.4 million.
   The company provides diversified transportation services in the United States domestic and international markets, organized in four lines of business: liner services; ship assist and escort services; oil and chemical distribution and transportation services; and energy and marine services.
   Liner services returned an operating income for the third quarter of $3.2 million, down from $6.2 million in the third quarter in 2002. Revenues from liner shipping rose by 6 percent, to $147.9 million, as Crowley’s container and non-container volume increased by 1 percent, to 142,928 TEUs, and average revenue climbed by 3 percent. The company also reported a 113-percent jump in “other logistical service revenues” after the acquisitions of transportation service providers in July 2003 and October 2002.
   Whereas Crowley experienced a 4-percent increase in its Puerto Rico and Caribbean islands container and non-container volume, it also had a 4-percent decrease in container and non-container volume in its Latin America volume. In the third quarter, average revenue in the Puerto Rico and Caribbean islands service increased 4.5 percent compared with the third quarter of 2002, and the Latin America service experienced a 1 percent decrease in average revenue “due to competitive pressures and declining
economic conditions in Latin America,” Crowley said.
   Crowley’s ship assist and escort services arm, its oil and chemical distribution and transportation services and its energy and marine services business also reported lower operating incomes for the third quarter.
   For the first nine months of 2003, Crowley earned a net income of $4.5 million, down from $9.1 million a year earlier, and had revenues of $737.3 million, slightly lower than the $739.2 million revenues for the third quarter of 2002.