Con-way Posts $154 Million 1Q Loss

SAN MATEO, Calif. (AP) — Trucking company Con-way Inc. said Thursday it lost almost $154 million, most of it on an accounting charge.

The company's loss of $3.35 per share for the quarter that ended March 31 compared with profit of $22.5 million, or 47 cents per share, during the same period last year. Revenue fell almost 20 percent to $962.9 million, from $1.2 billion a year ago.

Adjusting for the non-cash accounting charge to write down the value of what used to be Contract Freighters Inc., which the company purchased in 2007, along with other adjustments, Con-way said it would have lost $19.2 million, or 42 cents per share.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected a loss of 22 cents per share on revenue of $1.06 billion.

Operating results in the company's largest subsidiary, its less-than-truckload carrier Con-way Freight, fell to a loss of $23.4 million after making a $36.1 million profit a year ago. Revenue fell 24.7 percent to $559.7 million.

"The freight markets continued to suffer from excess capacity and intense price competition," said Douglas W. Stotlar, president and CEO.