Knight Transportation, Inc (KNX) has reported a 24.20 percent fall in profit for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2016. The company has earned $22.16 million, or $0.27 a share in the quarter, compared with $29.24 million, or $0.36 a share for the same period last year. On the other hand, adjusted net income for the quarter stood at $23.67 million, or $0.29 a share compared with $29.24 million or $0.36 a share, a year ago. Revenue during the quarter went down marginally by 0.56 percent to $289.10 million from $290.74 million in the previous year period. Gross margin for the quarter contracted 142 basis points over the previous year period to 58.72 percent. Total expenses were 87.98 percent of quarterly revenues, up from 84.99 percent for the same period last year. That has resulted in a contraction of 300 basis points in operating margin to 12.02 percent.
Operating income for the quarter was $34.74 million, compared with $43.65 million in the previous year period.
However, the adjusted operating income for the quarter stood at $37.19 million compared to $43.65 million in the prior year period. At the same time, adjusted operating margin contracted 215 basis points in the quarter to 12.86 percent from 15.01 percent in the last year period.
Dave Jackson, president and chief executive officer, commented on the quarter, "The freight environment continues to show signs of improvement as we experienced more non-contract opportunities during the fourth quarter of 2016 when compared to the same quarter last year. This resulted in continued year over year improvements in average miles per tractor and brokerage load count. Although our revenue per total mile continued to be down year over year, we experienced stronger sequential revenue per total mile growth from third quarter to fourth quarter this year when compared to the same period last year. With declining new truck orders, a weak used equipment market, and additional regulatory burdens expected to phase in during 2017, we expect continued improvement in the supply/demand relationship in the coming quarters."
Working capital drops significantly
Knight Transportation, Inc has witnessed a decline in the working capital over the last year. It stood at $111.54 million as at Dec. 31, 2016, down 32.02 percent or $52.55 million from $164.09 million on Dec. 31, 2015. Current ratio was at 2.42 as on Dec. 31, 2016, down from 3.05 on Dec. 31, 2015.
Debt comes down significantly
Knight Transportation, Inc has recorded a decline in total debt over the last one year. It stood at $18 million as on Dec. 31, 2016, down 83.93 percent or $94 million from $112 million on Dec. 31, 2015. Knight Transportation has recorded a decline in long-term debt over the last one year. It stood at $18 million as on Dec. 31, 2016, down 83.93 percent or $94 million from $112 million on Dec. 31, 2015. Total debt was 1.67 percent of total assets as on Dec. 31, 2016, compared with 10 percent on Dec. 31, 2015. Debt to equity ratio was at 0.02 as on Dec. 31, 2016, down from 0.15 as on Dec. 31, 2015. Interest coverage ratio improved to 224.10 for the quarter from 153.70 for the same period last year. Disclaimer: Please note that this is an auto-generated article. IRIS does not guarantee the accuracy, adequacy or completeness of any information and is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information. IRIS especially states that it has no financial liability whatsoever to any user on account of the use of information provided on its website. For queries contact: [email protected]
