UPS Earnings Continue To Grow
UPS announced diluted earnings per share of US$0.88 for the first quarter of 2011, a 24 percent improvement over the adjusted $0.71 for the prior-year period. Global revenue grew 7.3 percent, producing a 21 percent increase in operating profit to $1.4 billion.
On a reported basis, diluted earnings per share and operating profit increased 66 percent and 37 percent, respectively, over the same period last year.
“UPS produced strong first quarter results despite rapidly rising fuel costs and challenging weather conditions,” said Scott Davis, UPS chairman and CEO. “Once again we demonstrated the strength of our global portfolio and ability of our integrated operating model to further expand margins.”
Based on the company’s performance, UPS has increased its guidance for 2011 diluted earnings per share to a range of $4.15-to-$4.40, an increase of 17-to-24 percent over 2010 adjusted results.
In Asia Pacific, first quarter export volume growth was led by Vietnam and South Korea with growth exceeding 50 percent and nearly 30 percent respectively, while China experienced more than 10 percent growth.
“UPS witnessed strong growth in Asia Pacific as a result of our industry leading logistics capabilities and the exceptional value we create for our customers. This is despite the rising fuel prices, adverse global weather conditions and the unfortunate situation in Japan,” said Derek Woodward, president of UPS Asia Pacific Region, “We continued to invest in capacity and improved network connectivity as we focus on growth in 2011.”
During the quarter, new direct flights were launched between Hong Kong and Cologne, Germany, expanding capacity and enabling the company to offer the widest guaranteed next-day delivery coverage for both packages and heavy freight between Hong Kong and major European cities.
New routes were also established from Japan to Taipei and China, while UPS upsized its capacity serving the high-volume South Korea – U.S. trade lane with the addition of a 767 flying in-and-out of Inchon.
UPS also expanded its preferred less-than container load ocean freight service in Asia, following a successful pilot in Japan in 2010. More customers can now benefit from this unique expedited service that shortens ocean freight delivery times to the US by up to 40 percent.
“The growth story at UPS continues with earnings improving 24 percent as customers realize the benefits from the solutions we provide,” said Kurt Kuehn, UPS’s chief financial officer. “These outstanding results were produced through our focus on quality of revenue combined with the flexibility and efficiency of our global network.”
