Trucking firm cuts dividend by 80%

Article Excerpt

ARKANSAS BEST CORP. $29 (Nasdaq symbol ABFS; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 25.3 million; Market cap: $733.7 million; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.5; Dividend yield: 0.4%; WSSF Rating: Average) lost $127.9 million, or $5.12 a share, in 2009. That figure included a $64-million writedown of goodwill and a one-time, $4.6-million pension contribution. Without these costs, the company would have lost $61.6 million, or $2.46 a share. Arkansas Best earned $29.2 million, or $1.14 a share, in 2008. Revenue fell 19.6%, to $1.5 billion from $1.8 billion, as the slow economy continues to hurt demand for the company’s trucking services. In response to the shrinking revenue and earnings, Arkansas Best has cut 700 jobs, or 7% of its workforce. That should lower its annual costs by $15 million to $18 million, starting this year. To further conserve cash, Arkansas Best has cut its dividend by 80.0%. The new annual rate of $0.12 yields 0.4%. Arkansas Best is still a hold. hold…