Ryder finalizes Metro Truck & Tractor Leasing deal

The acquisition moves control of two Maryland facilities with a fleet of around 900 units.    Ryder System Inc. completed the acquisition of all outstanding equity of Metro Truck & Tractor Leasing on Friday.
   Ryder now will operate Metro’s two Maryland facilities in Beltsville and Baltimore, which provide truck leasing, rental and maintenance services to more than 150 customers with a fleet of around 900 units.
   At the Beltsville facility, Ryder will operate four maintenance bays and a fuel island with two 10,000-gallon fuel tanks, while the Baltimore facility is equipped with five maintenance bays and a fuel island that supports two 15,000-gallon fuel tanks.
   As part of the acquisition, Ryder purchased mobile maintenance vehicles that will provide maintenance services to customers in and around Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
   Commenting on the deal, Dennis Cooke, president of fleet management solutions at Ryder, said, “Customers who are transitioning to Ryder will now have the ability to leverage Ryder’s trusted network of more than 800 service locations and 5,900 trained technicians across the country.”
   Although financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed, Ryder said it expects the deal will be slightly accretive to its earnings this year.
   For 2017, Ryder posted net earnings of $790.6 million on total revenues of $7.3 billion, up from net earnings of $262.5 million on revenues of $6.8 billion for 2016. However, Ryder’s net earnings for the first quarter of 2018 tumbled 12.8 percent year-over-year to $33.5 million, despite total revenues picking up 9.6 percent to $1.9 billion.
   Metro was Ryder’s second acquisition announced this year, the first being e-commerce fulfillment provider MXD Group. Ryder’s acquisition of MXD was completed on April 2 at a price of approximately $120 million.