HUB GROUP REPORTS 65% FALL IN 4TH-QUARTER EARNINGS

HUB GROUP REPORTS 65% FALL IN 4TH-QUARTER EARNINGS    Hub Group, Inc., the Lombard, Ill.-based intermodal marketing and logistics company, reported a 65-percent drop in its fourth-quarter net income, to $1.1 million, with annual earnings halved when compared to 1999.
   The latest quarter’s net income compared to a net result of $3.1 million in the fourth quarter of 1999.
   For the fourth quarter quarter, revenue totaled $356.7 million, up 6 percent. Intermodal revenue was $260.7 million, which represents an increase of 4 percent over the same quarter in 1999. Brokerage revenue declined by 3 percent, to $51.1 million, and logistics revenue increased by 32 percent, to $44.9 million.
   Operating income for the latest quarter was $4.4 million, down from $8.3 million a year earlier.
   Hub said that in the fourth quarter it recorded charges related to changes in estimates and lease reserves on various software and hardware. The company also took a charge of approximately $400,000 for severance related primarily to its initiatives to centralize all accounting activity and information systems hardware.
   For the year, revenue totaled $1.38 billion, up 7 percent on 1999. Intermodal revenue was $1 billion, which represents a 4-percent increase over the prior year. Brokerage revenue increased by 6 percent, to $207.6 million, while logistics revenue grew 29 by percent, to $172.3 million.
   Operating income fell to $18.4 million last year, from $30.1 million in 1999.
   Net income for the year was $4.6 million, down from $10.8 million in the prior year.
      “The softening in the overall economy, particularly a weaker retail market in the fourth quarter, made it difficult to maintain historical growth rates in our core businesses,” said Phillip C. Yeager, chairman of Hub Group. “Our logistics business, however, is producing strong growth and our other diversification initiatives remain promising,” he added.