EX-99.1 CHARTER 3 exh99_1.htm FROZEN FOOD EXPRESS INDUSTRIES, INC. THIRD QUARTER 2008 REPORT exh99_1.htm
Exhibit 99.1
Frozen Food Express Industries, Inc.
Third Quarter 2008 Report

The Chairman’s Report

To Our Shareholders and Other Friends:
For the first time in a couple of years, we have strung together two consecutive profitable quarters.  And, very frankly, I’ll be disappointed if we don’t make it three in a row.  Let me be quick to add that I’m not guaranteeing a profitable fourth quarter.  After all, that quarter is typically one of our weakest and this economy is not likely to improve anytime soon.
Nevertheless, my expectations are high.  As I wrote in last year’s annual report:  “We don’t expect the economy to be any better in 2008 than it was in 2007.” What an understatement that was.  “But we do expect our performance this year to be better than it was last year.”  And, so far, that’s what has happened.
We didn’t improve our operations by finding a single silver bullet that has caused our operating results to substantially improve this year.   We have an $800 thousand profit so far this year compared to a $4.1 million loss for the same 9 months of 2007.  Instead, we put a bunch of new ideas into practice, beginning about two-and-a-half years ago with a fairly major shake-up of top management.  There’s nothing new about new ideas at FFE.  Although we’re 60-plus years old, we still are an entrepreneurial company.  What is new, it seems to me, is the disciplined manner in which these new ideas have been implemented into our day-to-day operations.
I’ll talk more in this year’s annual report about what I consider to be a new management tough-mindedness.  But, until then, let me give you just two examples.
The first example is our truckload operation.  We did an analysis that showed us the areas of the country in which our trucks could operate the most profitably.  Last year we challenged our marketing and our operations people to keep our trucks in this preferred network.  This is not as easy as it sounds.  When you’re in a soft market, the temptation to chase freight—wherever it is and regardless of its profitability—is great.  You’re keeping your drivers happy and generating revenue, so that must be a good thing?  Not so.  Unprofitable revenue is never a good thing, so we are focused more on profit and less on revenue.  As a result, our revenue per loaded mile is up, the number of loaded miles traveled is up and our empty-mile ratio is down.
Another example is our less-than-truckload operation, which we operate on a schedule, like a bus line.  When one of our LTL trucks is scheduled to pull away from the loading dock, it leaves, on time.  Full or not.  The schedules complicate a pre-complicated business, but our customers—and their customers—appreciate our punctuality.
In last year’s annual report, I told you about an initiative to increase the load factor of our LTL operation.  We were hauling too much air—empty space—in our LTL trailers.  So, we began a system-wide overhaul of our LTL schedules.  For example, if a two-trips-a-week schedule was running just 40% full, we cut it to once a week to increase that scheduled trip’s load factor.  And so forth.
We’ve kept after it, have made a number of schedule changes and have learned enough to figure that our schedule tweaking will be a continuing activity.
In June, we raised our LTL rates.  The results have been good.  Third-quarter per-hundredweight revenue was $15.04 compared to $14.14 in last year’s third quarter.  While our per-hundredweight revenue was up by about 6% over last year’s third quarter, our tonnage shipped was off by about 2% and LTL revenue was $32.9 million compared to $33.9 million for last year’s quarter.  I’ll trade 2% revenue for 6% profit increase any time.
I mentioned the economy.  It has been hard on this and virtually every other industry.  So has the price of fuel, which has lately come down to more manageable levels.  So far this year, truckers small and large have exited the market.  That has made drivers a little more available to us, but it has made market stamina and perseverance precious.  Truckers who specialize in non-perishable freight have suffered more than those who specialize in perishable freight, such as food.  Truckers who carry too much debt and require massive amounts of new capital have also been hit harder than others.  At FFE, we believe that our access to capital and our focus on perishable freight help to position us in a spot that is more resistant to the effects of the recession that we are already probably in.  We’ll give you an update in a few months.
 
Stoney M. (Mit) Stubbs, Jr.
Chairman and CEO









 
 

 

Balance Sheets
(In thousands)
(Unaudited)
Assets
 
September 30, 2008
   
December 31, 2007
 
Current assets
         
Cash and cash equivalents
  $ 2,243     $ 2,473  
Accounts receivable, net
    62,942       52,682  
Tires on equipment in use, net
    5,210       5,120  
Deferred income taxes
    3,643       2,978  
Other current assets
    10,371       14,607  
   Total current assets
    84,409       77,860  
                 
Property and equipment, net
    85,308       90,309  
Other assets
    5,083       5,500  
   Total assets
  $ 174,800     $ 173,669  
                 
Liabilities and shareholders' equity
               
Current liabilities
               
Accounts payable
  $ 24,333     $ 25,301  
Accrued claims
    11,291       12,342  
Accrued payroll and deferred compensation
    6,755       5,998  
Income tax payable
    48       --  
Accrued liabilities
    1,940       1,964  
   Total current liabilities
    44,367       45,605  
                 
Long-term debt
    5,800       --  
Deferred income taxes
    12,975       11,488  
Accrued claims
    4,492       9,317  
       Total liabilities
    67,634       66,410  
                 
Shareholders' equity
               
Par value of common stock (18,572 shares issued)
    27,858       27,858  
Paid in capital
    5,424       5,682  
Retained earnings
    87,809       88,515  
      121,091       122,055  
Treasury stock (1,814 and 1,921 shares, respectively), at cost
    (13,925 )     (14,796 )
Total shareholders' equity
    107,166       107,259  
   Total liabilities and shareholders' equity
  $ 174,800     $ 173,669  


 
 

 

Consolidated Condensed Statements of Profit and Loss
For the Three and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2008 and 2007
(In thousands, except per-share amounts)
(Unaudited)
   
Three Months
   
Nine Months
 
   
2008
   
2007
   
2008
   
2007
 
                         
Revenue  
  $ 132,451     $ 114,730     $ 378,206     $ 334,288  
                                 
                                 
Operating expenses
                               
      Salaries, wages and related expenses
    33,693       31,893       96,524       97,101  
      Purchased transportation
    29,517       30,813       93,141       83,216  
      Fuel
    32,130       21,684       88,694       61,435  
      Supplies and expenses
    14,047       13,911       39,864       40,926  
      Revenue equipment rent
    9,005       7,640       25,734       22,885  
      Depreciation
    4,684       4,592       14,183       14,697  
      Communications and utilities
    1,410       1,169       3,636       3,213  
      Claims and insurance
    2,733       3,125       9,001       12,212  
      Operating taxes and licenses
    1,163       1,188       3,431       3,550  
      Gains on sale of operating assets
    (491 )     (799 )     (1,096 )     (2,331 )
      Miscellaneous expenses
    1,000       772       3,234       2,501  
            Total operating expenses
    128,891       115,988       376,346       339,405  
     Income (loss) from operations
    3,560       (1,258     1,860       (5,117 )
Non-operating (income) expense
                               
     Equity in earnings of limited partnership
    (200 )     (211 )     (511 )     (418 )
     Interest income
    (12 )     (189 )     (66 )     (571 )
     Interest expense
    74       -       110       -  
     Sale of non-operating assets and other
    200       163       (108 )     523  
            Total non-operating expense (income)
    62       (237     (575 )     (466 )
                                 
Pre-tax income (loss)
    3,498       (1,021     2,435       (4,651 )
Income tax expense (benefit)
    2,141       2,214       1,629       (522 )
Net income (loss)
  $ 1,357     $ (3,235 )   $ 806     $ (4,129 )
                                 
Net income (loss) per share of common stock 
                               
      Basic
  $ 0.08     $ (0.19 )   $ 0.05     $ (0.24 )
      Diluted
  $ 0.08     $ (0.19 )   $ 0.05     $ (0.24 )
Weighted average shares outstanding
                               
      Basic
    16,737       17,293       16,699       17,335  
      Diluted
    17,027       17,293       16,998       17,335  


 
 

 

Corporate Information

Principal Subsidiaries and Divisions
     FFE Transportation Services, Inc.
     Lisa Motor Lines, Inc.
     American Eagle Lines
     FFE Logistics, Inc.

  Telephone: (214) 630-8090
  Internet: www.ffex.net
  E-mail: ir@ffex.net

  Common Stock Information
   The company’s common stock trades on the Global Select Market tier of the Nasdaqâ Stock Market under the ticker FFEX.
 
 
 
   The following is a summary of trading in our stock:
   
Nine Months Ended
 
   
September 30,
 
   
2008
   
2007
 
 
High stock price 
$ 8.39     $ 10.91  
 
Low stock price
  4.98       6.41  
 
Trading volume (000’s)
  3,438       13,031  


 
Transfer Agent – Registrar and Transfer Company
 
    This report contains information and forward-looking statements that are based on management’s current beliefs and expectations and assumptions which are based upon information currently available.  Forward-looking statements include statements relating to plans, strategies, objectives, expectations, intentions, and adequacy of resources, and may be identified by words such as “will”, “could”, “should”, “believe”, “expect”, “intend”, “plan”, “schedule”, “estimate”, “project”, and similar expressions.  These statements are based on current expectations and are subject to uncertainty and change.    
    Although management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will be realized.  Should one or more of the risks or uncertainties underlying such expectations not materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those expected.
    Among the key factors that are not within management’s control and that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in such forward-looking statements are national and global economic conditions, demand for the company’s services and products, and our ability to meet that demand, which may be affected by, among other things, competition, weather conditions and the general economy, the availability and cost of labor, our ability to negotiate favorably with lenders and lessors, the level of credit generally available in the capital markets, the effects of terrorism and war, the availability and cost of equipment, fuel and supplies, the market for previously-owned equipment, the impact of changes in the tax and regulatory environment in which the company operates, operational risks and insurance, risks associated with the technologies and systems we use and the other risks and uncertainties described in our filings with the SEC.