United Parcel Service (UPS) announced earnings of US$1.16 per share, or a net income of $1.1 billion, for the third quarter of 2013, a 9.4 percent improvement over the same period last year, as the global logistics giant said it was keeping its full-year earnings forecast for 2013.
Total revenue was $13.5 billion, up 3.4 percent, driven primarily by U.S. e-commerce shipments and strong European export growth.
For the three months ended September 30, the company delivered more than one billion packages worldwide, an increase of 4.6 percent over the prior-year period.
Daily package volume growth was led by international exports and U.S. domestic ground shipments.
Last year, third quarter earnings per share was $0.48 as a result of an after-tax, non-cash charge of $559 million to restructure pension liabilities for certain employees.
International revenue increased 2.5 percent to $3 billion on daily package volume improvement of 6.5 percent. Daily export shipments were 6.7 percent higher, with European exports up nearly 10 percent, while growth out of Asia was flat. Non-U.S. domestic volume was up 6.3 percent, driven by strong growth across Europe and Canada.
For its supply chain and freight division, UPS’s operating profit improved 7 percent to $201 million. Revenue in the segment was down slightly from the prior-year period, as growth in freight was offset by declines in the forwarding business.
“Third-quarter results were strong and in line with our expectations,” said Kurt Kuehn, UPS chief financial officer. “Looking to the fourth quarter, although some major retailers have expressed caution about holiday spending, they still expect robust online sales.”
Kuehn reiterated the company’s full-year guidance of earnings per share of $4.65 to $4.85, a 3 percent to 7 percent increase over 2012.
Photo: James Willamor
