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8-K - 8-K - HEARTLAND EXPRESS INCearningsrelease8k2015q2.htm


Exhibit 99.1

July 28, 2015 For Immediate Release

Press Release

Heartland Express, Inc. Reports Revenues and Earnings for the Second Quarter of 2015 - Net Income increased 32% compared to 1st Quarter 2015 and lower Operating Ratio compared to 1st Quarter 2015 and 2nd Quarter 2014.

NORTH LIBERTY, IOWA - July 28, 2015 - Heartland Express, Inc. (Nasdaq: HTLD) announced today financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2015. Highlights included:

Net Income increased 32.4% sequentially to 1st quarter of 2015,
Operating Ratio improvement from 84.9% to 81.4% sequentially to 1st quarter of 2015,
Operating Ratio improvement from 82.1% 2nd quarter of 2014 to 81.4% 2nd quarter of 2015 ,
Operating Ratio improvement from 86.4% year to date 2014 to 83.1% same period 2015,
Operating Ratio improvements despite a 13% increase in average driver wages implemented over November 2014 and January 2015,
Increased cash reserves by $27.3 million.

Operating results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2015 showed continued strength from freight demand, reduction of operating costs and generation of incremental cash reserves along with continued upgrades to our operating fleet.

Financial Results
Heartland Express (the "Company") ended the second quarter of 2015 with basic earnings per share of $0.27 and an operating ratio (operating expenses as a percentage of operating revenues) of 81.4% compared to $0.30 basic earnings per share and 82.1% operating ratio in the second quarter of 2014. The Company ended the quarter with net income of $23.3 million, compared to $26.5 million in the second quarter of 2014, an 11.9% decrease. Operating revenues were $191.7 million, a 15.5% decrease, compared to $226.8 million in the second quarter of 2014. Operating revenues for the quarter included fuel surcharge revenues of $25.7 million compared to $46.2 million in the same period of 2014, a $20.5 million decrease. Operating revenues decreased 8.1% excluding the impact of fuel surcharge revenues. Operating revenues increased 2.2%, compared to $187.5 million in the first quarter of 2015 with relatively flat fuel surcharge revenues. The Company posted a 12.2% net margin (net income as a percentage of operating revenues) in the second quarter of 2015 compared to 11.7%, in the second quarter of 2014.

For the six month period ended June 30, 2015 the Company had basic earnings per share of $0.47 and an operating ratio (operating expenses as a percentage of operating revenues) of 83.1% compared to basic earnings per share of $0.46 and an operating ratio of 86.4% for the same six month period ended June 30, 2014. The Company ended the six month period ended June 30, 2015 with operating revenues of $379.2 million and net income of $40.9 million, compared to $451.3 million and $40.6 million, respectively for the same six month period ended June 30, 2014. Operating revenues for the six month period ended June 30, 2015 included fuel surcharge revenues of $51.8 million compared to $92.1 million for the same period of 2014, a $40.3 million decrease. Operating income for the six month period was positively impacted by a $3.9 million increase in gains on disposal of property and equipment and a $15.0 million decrease in net fuel expense. The Company posted a 10.8% net margin (net income as a percentage of operating revenues) in the six months ended June 30, 2015 compared to 9.0%, for the same period of 2014.

The current freight environment continues to allow the Company to work on yield management along with the Company's efforts on reducing costs. These efforts resulted in operating ratio improvements for the quarter and six month periods ended June 30, 2015 compared to the respective periods of 2014, excluding





the volatility of gains on disposal of property and equipment. Further, this improvement was achieved despite an average 13% increase in average driver wages which was implemented in late 2014 to address the ongoing industry challenges of recruiting and retaining qualified drivers.

Balance Sheet, Liquidity, and Capital Expenditures

At June 30, 2015, the Company had $79.5 million in cash balances and no borrowings under the Company's unsecured line of credit. The Company had $220.6 million in available borrowing capacity on the line of credit at June 30, 2015 after consideration of $4.4 million outstanding letters of credit. The Company continues to be in compliance with associated financial covenants. The Company's debt balance decreased $24.6 million from December 31, 2014 due to repayments during January 2015. The Company ended the quarter with total assets of $782.1 million.

Net cash flows from operations for the first six months of 2015 showed continued improvement over the prior year at 26.4% of operating revenues or $100 million. The primary use of cash during the six month period ended June 30, 2015 was $24.6 million for the repayment of long-term debt obligations and $7.4 million for purchases of property and equipment, net of trades and sale proceeds. The Company currently anticipates a total of approximately $75 to $85 million in net capital expenditures for the calendar year. The Company ended the past twelve months with a return on total assets of 11.1% and a 17.6% return on equity.

The average age of the Company's tractor fleet was 1.7 years as of June 30, 2015 compared to 2.2 years at June 30, 2014. During the second quarter of 2015 the Company took delivery of approximately 270 new tractors and has approximately 1,000 new tractors scheduled for delivery prior to the end of the year. The new tractors have been and will continue to be a mix of International ProStar Plus and Freightliner Cascadia models in 2015. The average age of tractors is currently expected to decrease throughout the remainder of 2015 to an estimated average age of 1.3 years by December 31, 2015. The average age of the Company's trailer fleet was 4.5 years at June 30, 2015 compared to 4.6 years at June 30, 2014. The average age of trailers is currently estimated to remain flat at approximately 4.5 years through December 31, 2015. During the second quarter of 2015 the Company took delivery of approximately 200 new trailers and has approximately 250 new trailers scheduled for delivery prior to the end of 2015. The demand for used revenue equipment remains strong and the Company will continue to take advantage of a favorable used equipment market during the remainder of 2015. It is currently estimated that the Company's dry-van trailer fleet, excluding specialty equipment, will be 100% 2012 and newer model years by the end of 2015.

Heartland Express Chief Executive Officer Michael Gerdin, commented on the quarterly results and positioning of the Company, "We continue to show good progress towards our goal of getting our consolidated operating ratio, excluding gains on equipment, to our historical operating levels of the low 80's prior to the Gordon Trucking, Inc. acquisition in November 2013. During this same time period we have made significant capital investments in our fleet, increased our driver wages 13%, and paid off our entire debt balance. With the current average age of our tractor and trailer fleets, where they are estimated to be at the end of 2015, and the Company being debt free, the Company is solidly positioned for the upcoming years ahead, no matter what the environment holds."
            
The Company continues its commitment to stockholders through the payment of cash dividends. A dividend of $0.02 per share was declared during the quarter and was paid on July 2, 2015. The Company has now paid cumulative cash dividends of $454.0 million, including three special dividends, ($2.00 in 2007, $1.00 in 2010, and $1.00 in 2012) over the past forty-eight consecutive quarters. The Company has also repurchased approximately $80.5 million of common stock over the past five years although there were no shares repurchased during 2014 or 2015.

We continued to deliver award-winning service and safety to our customers and leveraged technology to drive improvements across our organization as evidenced by the following awards received during the quarter:






Fedex Express - Carrier of the Year (2015, our 5th consecutive year and 8th time in 9 years)
Fedex Express - Platinum Award for On-Time Service (2015, 99.92% on-time service)
Georgia Pacific - Consumer Products Dedicated Carrier of the Year (2015)
Indiana Safe Fleet - 1st Place (5-10 million mile category)
Illinois Safe Fleet - 1st Place (Category IV)
CIO 100 Award (2015) - Awarded by IDG's CIO Magazine


Other Information

This press release may contain statements that might be considered as forward-looking statements or predictions of future operations. Such statements are based on management's belief or interpretation of information currently available. These statements and assumptions involve certain risks and uncertainties. Actual events may differ from these expectations as specified from time to time in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
 
Contact: Heartland Express, Inc.
Mike Gerdin, Chief Executive Officer
John Cosaert, Chief Financial Officer
319-626-3600






HEARTLAND EXPRESS, INC.
AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
(In thousands, except per share amounts)
(unaudited)
 
 
Three Months Ended June 30,
 
Six Months Ended June 30,
 
 
2015
 
2014
 
2015
 
2014
OPERATING REVENUE
 
$
191,684

 
$
226,785

 
$
379,207

 
$
451,265

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
OPERATING EXPENSES:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Salaries, wages, and benefits
 
$
70,904

 
$
71,240

 
$
141,900

 
$
142,185

Rent and purchased transportation
 
9,211

 
13,741

 
18,537

 
28,252

Fuel
 
34,196

 
59,338

 
68,452

 
122,563

Operations and maintenance
 
8,379

 
9,776

 
16,512

 
19,897

Operating taxes and licenses
 
4,378

 
5,319

 
9,192

 
10,165

Insurance and claims
 
3,469

 
4,370

 
10,113

 
11,465

Communications and utilities
 
1,453

 
1,553

 
2,996

 
3,383

Depreciation and amortization
 
26,876

 
26,668

 
52,850

 
51,241

Other operating expenses
 
6,747

 
7,997

 
14,505

 
16,687

Gain on disposal of property and equipment
 
(9,668
)
 
(13,859
)
 
(19,849
)
 
(15,903
)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
155,945

 
186,143

 
315,208

 
389,935

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Operating income
 
35,739

 
40,642

 
63,999

 
61,330

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Interest income
 
61

 
106

 
93

 
142

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Interest expense
 

 
(132
)
 
(19
)
 
(287
)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Income before income taxes
 
35,800

 
40,616

 
64,073

 
61,185

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Federal and state income taxes
 
12,484

 
14,144

 
23,145

 
20,634

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Net income
 
$
23,316

 
$
26,472

 
$
40,928

 
$
40,551

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Earnings per share
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Basic
 
$
0.27

 
$
0.30

 
$
0.47

 
$
0.46

Diluted
 
$
0.27

 
$
0.30

 
$
0.47

 
$
0.46

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Weighted average shares outstanding
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Basic
 
87,814

 
87,728

 
87,802

 
87,716

Diluted
 
87,967

 
87,900

 
87,966

 
87,908

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Dividends declared per share
 
$
0.02

 
$
0.02

 
$
0.04

 
$
0.04







HEARTLAND EXPRESS, INC.
AND SUBSIDIARIES 
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(in thousands, except per share amounts)
(unaudited)
 
 
June 30,
 
December 31,
ASSETS
 
2015
 
2014
CURRENT ASSETS
 
 
 
 
Cash and cash equivalents
 
$
79,476

 
$
17,303

Trade receivables, net
 
70,460

 
77,034

Prepaid tires
 
9,399

 
10,160

Prepaid shop supplies
 
1,429

 
2,056

Other current assets
 
16,482

 
8,992

Income tax receivable
 
2,900

 
19,920

Deferred income taxes, net
 
16,536

 
14,767

Total current assets
 
196,682

 
150,232

 
 
 
 
 
PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT
 
667,247

 
678,566

Less accumulated depreciation
 
208,124

 
198,007

 
 
459,123

 
480,559

GOODWILL
 
100,212

 
100,212

OTHER INTANGIBLES, NET
 
15,148

 
16,380

OTHER ASSETS
 
10,929

 
12,611

 
 
$
782,094

 
$
759,994

LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
 
 
 
 
CURRENT LIABILITIES
 
 
 
 
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities
 
$
16,834

 
$
8,261

Compensation and benefits
 
28,262

 
26,303

Insurance accruals
 
19,353

 
19,249

Other accruals
 
13,475

 
14,475

Total current liabilities
 
77,924

 
68,288

LONG-TERM LIABILITIES
 
 
 
 
Income taxes payable
 
15,498

 
18,296

Long-term debt
 

 
24,600

Deferred income taxes, net
 
101,311

 
101,605

Insurance accruals less current portion
 
60,998

 
59,300

Other long-term liabilities
 
11,653

 
11,318

Total long-term liabilities
 
189,460

 
215,119

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
 
 
 
 
STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
 
 
 
 
Capital stock, common, $.01 par value; authorized 395,000 shares; issued 90,689 in 2015 and 2014; outstanding 87,862 in 2015 and 87,781 in 2014, respectively
 
907

 
907

Additional paid-in capital
 
3,734

 
4,058

Retained earnings
 
547,243

 
509,834

Treasury stock, at cost; 2,827 in 2015 and 2,908 in 2014, respectively
 
(37,174
)
 
(38,212
)
 
 
514,710

 
476,587

 
 
$
782,094

 
$
759,994