Ryder System Inc., a Miami-based leader in supply chain and transportation management solutions, has reported third-quarter 2002 net earnings improved to $33.8 million, compared with a net loss of $5.5 million in the third quarter of 2001.

Earnings per diluted share were $0.54 compared with a $0.09 loss per diluted share in the third quarter of 2001. Revenue for the three months ended Sept. 30, 2002 was $1.21 billion, down 2.4% from $1.24 billion in the comparable period last year.
Earnings per share before recovery on restructuring and other items increased 8.2% to $0.53 in the third quarter of 2002, compared with $0.49 in the year-earlier period. Earnings per share in the year-earlier period included a $0.05 per share charge for goodwill amortization, which was eliminated effective Jan. 1, 2002. Revenue was impacted by the continuing slow economic conditions in the U.S. and other parts of the world. The downturn caused volume reductions in the dedicated contract carriage business segment, within some industry sectors of the supply chain solutions business segment and in certain international areas.
These conditions led to reduced transportation miles run and continued weak leasing demand. Rental utilization, however, showed improvement for the third consecutive quarter and automotive volumes within the supply chain solutions business increased.
"Ryder's revenue continued to experience the effects of a global economy in which many customers are on the sidelines and are not seeing the kind of sustained improvement they need in order to make investment decisions," said Gregory T. Swienton, chairman, president and CEO. "We did, however, see improvement in our European operations and are somewhat encouraged by several other positive indicators in our business such as increased rental utilization, volume increases in the automotive sector and improved used truck sales in the U.S. The cost management focus and continuous improvement processes have helped us deliver earnings in an otherwise difficult business environment."
Revenue through the third quarter of 2002 was $3.57 billion, down 6.5% from $3.82 billion for the same period in 2001. Ryder's year-to-date earnings, before goodwill accounting changes, were $80.1 million, up more than three times the $18.5 million reported for the same period in 2001. Year-to-date earnings per share, before goodwill accounting changes, increased more than three times to $1.28, from $0.30 for the same period last year. Earnings per share for the first nine months of 2002 included a $0.02 per share recovery on restructuring and other items. Earnings per share in the year-earlier period included an $0.89 per share charge for restructuring and other items, a $0.15 charge for goodwill amortization, which was eliminated effective Jan. 1, 2002, as well as an $0.11 per share one-time tax benefit related to a change in Canadian tax law.