With year-over-year revenue down more than 20% from COVID-19 but profits holding fairly steady, Murray Mullen, CEO of Mullen Group, said the Canadian trucking and logistics company has begun rehiring some laid-off workers and sees recovery coming.
Mullen said a combination of its own operational efficiencies and performance, as well as federal wage subsidies, will allow the company to finish the second quarter with a level of profitability similar to that of a year earlier.
“It certainly appears we have weathered the worst of this crisis and we are very well-positioned to capitalize on future opportunities,” Mullen said in a statement accompanying a midquarter update.
Mullen said the company has rehired about 20% of the 1,000 employees it temporarily laid off. The firm announced its first layoffs in March.
The CEO pointed to the reopening of Canada’s economy as a cause for optimism.
“Consumers are once again active, plants and factories are reopening which points to a recovery in the demand for logistics and trucking services.”
Mullen predicted second-quarter revenues will come in at C$240 million-$260 million, a more than 20% drop compared to the same period of 2019. The CEO said “there is a good chance” of operating income coming in somewhat better at C$40 million, a drop of 15%.
He noted that with an expected C$10 million from federal wage subsidies, Mullen Group’s net profits may come in similar to the C$51.4 million in net income from the second quarter of 2019.
Murray Mullen will discuss the company’s midquarter performance in a call with analysts on Friday.