William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor | Feb 01, 2012 3:42PM EST
Strong truckload demand pushed revenue up 10.4 percent in the fourth quarter to $2.6 billion at C.H. Robinson Worldwide, the largest U.S. freight broker.
Truckload volume rose about 7 percent in the quarter from the previous year, though higher fuel costs cut into C.H. Robinson’s truckload net margin.
Net profit for the quarter rose 5.9 percent to $109.2 million. For the year, net profit and total revenue both rose 11.5 percent to $431.6 million on $10.3 billion.
Total revenue for the 2011 rose 11.5 percent to $10.3 billion, with truck revenue, including truckload and less-than-truckload sales, up 14.9 percent to $1.2 billion. The company sustained that shipping demand through Jan. 30, reporting North American truckload volume growth per business day of approximately 7 percent.
“Through the same period, our total net revenue growth per business day was approximately 6 percent,” the logistics company said in its earnings statement.
Less-than-truckload net revenue rose 22 percent, driven by a 14 percent increase in volume and pricing increases. Intermodal sales rose 7.9 percent on higher volume.
The increases in volume outpaced the company’s third quarter performance. Fourth-quarter truckload costs rose 4 percent, while truckload pricing charged to shippers by the third-party operator rose 3 percent, excluding fuel surcharges.
-- Contact William B. Cassidy at wcassidy@joc.com. Follow him on Twitter @wbcassidy_joc.
