USA Truck named its current chief financial officer, James Reed, as president and chief executive officer Monday. His new job is effective immediately.
Reed replaced John "Randy" Rogers, who joined the Van Buren truckload and brokerage company just over one year ago. Reed is the company's third chief executive in a year and a half.
Reed joined the company in November after four years at Interstate Distributor Co., a trucking company based in Tacoma, Wash. He has worked in finance at public companies for 15 years.
Jim Craig also will change roles, from president of the company's brokerage division to a new position, executive vice president and chief commercial officer. According to a news release, he will "focus on driving the Company's topline revenue through increased coordination of USA Truck's internal operations, as well as improving the overall customer service experience."
Craig joined USA Truck in February 2016.
"Last year was a tough year for our industry in general, and specifically for USA Truck," Robert Peiser, chairman of the board of directors, said in the release. "With the need for a different approach to the Company's strategy to improve its operations, we are extremely pleased to have executives of James' and Jim's caliber assume leadership of the Company."
In his news release, Reed said, "All of us understand that we must execute and deliver improved results quickly." Reed said he will focus on "accelerating the pace of change at USA Truck, including expanding USAT Logistics, improving service levels in our truckload business and reducing operating costs to enhance and strengthen our financial performance."
USA Truck has set a goal of diversifying its business model by growing its brokerage division, USAT Logistics, to 50 percent of total business from the current 30 percent.
The company has struggled in recent years, posting three consecutive quarterly losses in 2016.
Since an attempted hostile takeover bid from Knight Transportation in 2013, USA Truck's stock climbed steadily to $31 in early 2015, until its second-quarter report in August 2016. Since then the stock has more than halved. It's fourth-quarter earnings are due week.
The company's chief information officer, Chris Rhodes, left in early January, and Reed filled a vacancy left by former Chief Financial Officer Michael Borrows in May 2016. They company reported that it will start a search for a chief financial officer.
The announcement was made after the Nasdaq exchange closed, when USA Truck stock closed at $8.98, down 13 cents.
Business on 01/31/2017