UPS Reports 13% Increase in Earnings
UPS has reported strong financial performance for the second quarter, with all segments showing growth despite a lackluster economy in the United States and much of the world.
UPS has reported strong financial performance for the second quarter, with all segments showing growth despite a lackluster economy in the United States and much of the world.
Highlights for the quarter included:
-- Earnings per diluted share increased 13% to $0.61 from $0.54 last year.
-- U.S. package volume increased 1.2%, paced by a 9.1% increase in Next Day Air volume.
-- International profitability increased more than 150%.
-- Non-package profits climbed 34%.
"We're quite pleased with our results this quarter as all units met our expectations," said Scott Davis, UPS' chief financial officer. "We're also seeing each business segment contribute to the success of the other units as we deploy integrated solutions across the supply chain."
For the quarter ended June 30, 2003, revenue totaled $8.23 billion, up 7.1% from the $7.68 billion reported during the same period in 2002. Consolidated operating profit increased 5.1% to $1.08 billion. Net income totaled $692 million, an increase of 13.3% over the prior year's $611 million.
The international segment led the company's results, with revenue increasing 19.8% to $1.37 billion and operating profit surging 154.8% to $158 million. Operating margin for the segment was 11.5%, making this the third consecutive quarter with international operating margins over 10%. Worldwide export volume climbed 6.2%, led by a 15% gain in Asia.
Within the U.S. domestic segment, revenue increased 3.7% over the prior-year period to $6.12 billion while domestic operating profit fell 7.5% to $832 million. Profits declined mainly due to significant increases in health care and pension costs. Domestic operating margins, while lower than last year, improved over the previous quarter. U.S. volume increased 1.2% to an average of 11.8 million packages per day. Next Day Air volume increased 9.1% to an average of 1.2 million deliveries per day, driven largely by strength in the home mortgage sector. Ground and Deferred package volume also increased over last year.
"Looking to the third quarter, we expect to see additional improvement in our U.S. domestic segment, with volume growth in the range of 2-to-3%," Davis said. "We also anticipate our international business will continue to show solid growth and the positive trends in our non-package segment should continue."
Davis also said the company expects third quarter earnings to be in the range of $0.58 to $0.62 per diluted share compared to the $0.51 recorded during the period last year. The company remains on track to achieve its targeted earnings growth of 10-to-15% for the full year.
Headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., UPS serves more than 200 countries and territories worldwide.
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