Ryder Profit Drops 88%, Beats Expectations

Trucking and logistics management company Ryder Systems(R Quote) entered a stall in the first quarter, suffering an 88% drop in first-quarter earnings on slower commercial vehicle rentals and used vehicle sales.

Despite the plunge in profits and a move by the company to suspend issuing earnings forecasts, Ryder shares grew 9% to $26.53 in afternoon trading, as the company exceeded analysts' expectations.

Revenue dropped 22% to $1.2 billion from $1.54 billion, while net profit fell to $6.8 million, or 12 cents a share. Excluding a restructuring charge of $6.9 million, or 13 cents a share, earnings were 25 cents a share, or 3 cents higher than the projections of analyst polled by Thomson Reuters.

While the company halted forecasts -- citing the uncertainties in the economy -- executives predicted the business will remain weak throughout the year.