Truckload carrier Knight Transportation saw a slight improvement in revenue during the fourth quarter, but net income was down 18.6 percent from the year-ago quarter, a sign that the near-term challenges are still hitting the truckload sector.


The Phoenix-based company brought in net income of $13.1 million in the fourth quarter, a drop of 18.6 percent from the year-ago's $16.1 million.

However, the carrier did see some positive signs of a turnaround. Revenue before fuel surcharge was up 0.2 percent to $143.9 million compared to $143.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2008. Meanwhile, total revenue was down 4 percent as a result of the decreased fuel surcharge revenue with the cost of diesel fuel per gallon falling.

Kevin Knight, chairman and CEO of the company, pointed to the company's year-over-year improvement in miles per tractor and the 10.6 percent gain in total loads hauled during the quarter. The company's miles per tractor were up 2.1 percent from the year-ago period.

"Throughout 2009, the year-over-year negative difference in miles per tractor narrowed as the year progressed until now being positive for the first time in many quarters," Knight said. "Although significant improvement in miles per tractor is needed before rivaling the levels experienced a few years ago, we believe that our improvement in miles per tractor, especially without major reductions in our tractor count, is evidence that we are in the early stages of a turnaround in the truckload freight market."

"We expect the challenging truckload market to yield opportunities to continue to capture market share over time," he added. "We believe we are well positioned to navigate the challenges of the current environment and thrive as the market improves when truckload capacity decreases and/or freight demand modestly increases."