Central Freight Lines Inc., Waco, Texas, announced its financial and operating results for the quarter and year ended Dec. 31, 2004.

Central also announced that it has entered into a new four-year, $70.0 million credit facility with Bank of America, replacing its previous revolving credit facility and accounts receivable security facility and providing Central with additional liquidity.
For the fourth quarter of 2004, Central's operating revenue was $85.5 million on 60 working days, compared to operating revenue of $89.5 million on 59 working days for the fourth quarter of 2003. Revenue per working day decreased 6.1% and total tons hauled per working day decreased 7.4% for the fourth quarter of 2004 compared to the same period in 2003. LTL revenue per hundredweight increased 2.4% from $11.79 in the 2003 quarter to $12.07 in the 2004 quarter, due to an increase in fuel surcharge revenue. Excluding fuel surcharge revenue, LTL revenue per hundredweight was down 3.8% in the 2004 quarter compared to the 2003 quarter.
A net loss of $8.9 million, or $0.49 per diluted share, was realized in the fourth quarter of 2004. This net loss included a non-cash charge of $2.9 million, or $0.16 per diluted share, related to the write-off of a deferred tax asset. Pro forma income from continuing operations for the fourth quarter of 2003 was $2.2 million, or $0.17 per diluted share, using a pro forma tax rate of approximately 39%. Prior to November 1, 2003, Central was an S corporation and federal income tax attributes flowed directly to stockholders.
For the full year 2004, operating revenue amounted to $386.6 million, a 0.8% decrease from the $389.7 million in 2003. A net loss of $20.5 million, or $1.14 per diluted share, was reported for 2004, compared to pro forma income from continuing operations of $8.4 million, or $0.69 per diluted share, in 2003.
Central's President and Chief Executive Officer, Bob Fasso, commented on the Company's results: "Our goal for the fourth quarter was to obtain significant improvement in the operating ratio over the third quarter, despite three less working days and the seasonal drop in revenue per day. We achieved this goal, as our operating ratio improved 250 basis points to 108.4% from 110.9% between the third and fourth quarter of 2004."