UPS fourth-quarter profit gets holiday boost
Shipping giant UPS posted higher revenue and nearly tripled its fourth-quarter profit, as higher volume during the critical holiday shopping season fueled results.
The company eked out a 1% gain in total revenue to $16.1 billion, while net income rose to $1.33 billion from $453 million a year ago.
When factoring out the negative effect of currency exchange rates — primarily the fact that the strong U.S. dollar is making overseas business less lucrative — total revenue was up 2.4%.
The company's fourth-quarter earnings per share, excluding one-time items, rose to $1.57 from $1.25 a year earlier. That outpaced S&P Capital IQ estimates of $1.42.
Total package volume rose 1.8% to 1.3 billion units in the quarter and increased 2.1% to 4.7 billion for the year.
UPS said "strong demand from e-commerce shippers" contributed to a 2.4% uptick in daily shipments.
“This was the fourth consecutive quarter that UPS exceeded our financial expectations,” said Richard Peretz, UPS chief financial officer, in a statement. "Our business generated strong results in 2015. While we face uncertain macro-economic conditions, we are continuing to invest for profitable growth."
The company projected 2016 earnings per share of $5.70 to $5.90, which would reflect an increase of 5% to 9% above 2015.
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