Because of lower revenue per day and higher vehicle depreciation costs, Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc announced on Aug. 5 a narrower-than-expected quarterly loss of 23 cents a share, according to Reuters.

Vehicle depreciation costs per vehicle rose about 28 percent due to the softness in the used-car market. For the full year, vehicle depreciation costs on a per vehicle basis will be about 15 percent higher than the year ago, the company said.

For the second quarter, net income was $10.8 million, or 49 cents a share, compared with $15.3 million, or 63 cents a share, in the year-ago period.

The company’s loss of 23 cents a share was excluding an income of 72 cents related to an increase in fair value of derivatives. Revenue fell to $445.7 million from $451.6 million, while revenue per day fell 1.3 percent.

Dollar Thrifty said average fleet decreased 4.4 percent during the quarter.

The company expects volatility in used-car pricing, credit markets and reduced airline capacity to continue, according to Reuters.

Gary L. Paxton, president and chief executive officer of Dollar Thrifty, said that the company continues to concentrate on the items that it controls in this tough economic environment, such as maximizing revenue per day, vehicle utilization, cost reduction and service delivery.

Vehicle rental revenue is expected to be down 1 percent to 2 percent for the year.

0 Comments