UPS Releases 1st Quarter Results

Revenue Gains Led by International, Supply Chain & Freight; U.S. Economic Conditions Drive Earnings Decline

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

UPS (NYSE:UPS) today reported increased revenue in all segments with double-digit gains in both international package and supply chain and freight operations. A sharp decline in U.S. economic activity, however, led to a 9.4% drop in diluted earnings per share to $0.87 compared to a prior-year adjusted $0.96.

In 2007, first quarter adjusted earnings per share excluded an impairment charge related to aging jet aircraft and expenses for a voluntary separation program. Including these charges, diluted earnings per share for the first quarter of 2008 increased 11.5% over the $0.78 per share reported in the prior year.

For the three months ended March 31, 2008, consolidated revenue increased 6.5% to $12.7 billion while consolidated average daily volume remained flat at 15.1 million packages per day. Consolidated average revenue per piece increased 5.4%.

"U.S. economic activity deteriorated more rapidly than expected during the quarter," said Scott Davis, UPS chairman and CEO. "While we will be extremely vigilant with respect to costs in this difficult environment, we will not lose our focus on growing the business. We will continue to invest in the infrastructure, new products and services that will enable our customers to succeed in the global marketplace.

"UPS has successfully managed its operations through many economic cycles and we will do so again," Davis added.


Consolidated Results                  1Q 2008 1Q 2007 1Q 2007 adjusted
------------------------------------- ------- ------- ----------------
   Revenue                            $ 12.7B $ 11.9B
   Operating profit                   $ 1.49B $ 1.36B           $1.65B
   Operating margin                     11.8%   11.4%            13.8%
   Average volume per day              15.13M  15.13M
   Diluted earnings per share         $ 0.87  $ 0.78            $0.96

During the first quarter, UPS delivered total consolidated volume of 968 million packages, unchanged from a year ago. Results were negatively affected by a shift from premium products, the timing of the Easter holiday and sharply rising fuel costs.

Cash Position

UPS ended the quarter with $1.48 billion in cash and marketable securities. UPS also:


    --  Generated $1.62 billion in free cash flow, excluding an $850
        million U.S. federal tax refund related to the company's
        withdrawal from the Central States Pension Plan.

    --  Purchased 17.4 million shares at a cost of $1.24 billion,
        leaving $8.9 billion of the authorization remaining for
        purchases UPS expects to complete by the end of 2009.

    --  Paid dividends totaling $893 million. The dividend was
        increased 7% during the quarter.

    --  Invested $661 million in capital expenditures.


U.S. Domestic Package                 1Q 2008 1Q 2007 1Q 2007 adjusted
------------------------------------- ------- ------- ----------------
   Revenue                            $ 7.74B $ 7.55B
   Operating profit                   $  959M $  941M           $1.15B
   Operating margin                     12.4%   12.5%            15.3%
   Average volume per day              13.25M  13.29M

The slowing U.S. economy not only reduced average daily volume in the U.S. by 0.3% for the quarter but also contributed to a shift away from premium products. Volume declined 3.8% for Next Day Air(R) and 2.9% for Deferred, while increasing 0.3% for Ground. Revenue per piece remained stable for all service levels, with consolidated revenue per piece increasing 2.7%.

The volume decrease, shift away from premium products and increased fuel costs during the quarter contributed to the declines in operating profit and margin.


International Package                    1Q     1Q    1Q 2007 adjusted
                                         2008   2007
--------------------------------------- ------ ------ ----------------
   Revenue                              $2.76B $2.39B
   Operating profit                     $ 421M   371M           $ 440M
   Operating margin                      15.3%  15.6%            18.4%
   Average volume per day                1.88M  1.84M

The segment's performance, as expected, was negatively impacted by the timing of Easter, which resulted in two fewer operating days in Europe. The segment also experienced higher fuel costs in the quarter. Export volume increased approximately 10% in local operating days, which drove a 15.7% revenue increase. U.S. export volume growth was strong, leading to a balanced global performance with Asia, Europe and the U.S. each experiencing a double-digit increase.


Supply Chain and Freight              1Q 2008 1Q 2007 1Q 2007 adjusted
------------------------------------- ------- ------- ----------------
   Revenue                             $2.18B  $1.97B
   Operating profit                    $ 113M  $  46M            $ 54M
   Operating margin                      5.2%    2.3%             2.7%

Revenue increased almost 11%. Forwarding and Logistics revenue increased 12.8%, driven by the new air freight portfolio launched in January. LTL freight revenue grew 4.1% and was constrained by the slowing U.S. economy. Operating profit for the segment more than doubled.

Outlook

"We see no signs of economic strengthening in the second quarter," said Kurt Kuehn, UPS's chief financial officer. "As a result, the company expects earnings for the quarter in a range of $0.97 to $1.04 per diluted share compared to $1.04 for the second quarter of 2007."

Commenting on annual earnings guidance, Kuehn said, "Most forecasters are projecting that current anemic conditions will prevail for the remainder of the year. Therefore, we are reducing our 2008 earnings expectations to a range of $3.90 to $4.20 per diluted share.

"Despite the current state of the U.S. economy, the long-term growth fundamentals for our industry and for UPS are very favorable," Kuehn added. "Our international and supply chain businesses continue to offer great opportunity. In the U.S., we're positioning our small package business to weather this downturn and to be poised for economic recovery."

UPS (NYSE: UPS) is the world's largest package delivery company and a global leader in supply chain and freight services. With more than a century of experience in transportation and logistics, UPS is a leading global trade expert equipped with a broad portfolio of solutions. Headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., UPS serves more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. The company can be found on the Web at UPS.com. To get UPS news direct, visit pressroom.ups.com/RSS.

For Immediate Release

EDITOR'S NOTE: UPS Chairman and CEO Scott Davis and CFO Kurt Kuehn will discuss first quarter results with investors and analysts during a conference call at 8:30 a.m. EDT today. That call is open to listeners through a live Webcast. To access the call, go to www.shareholder.com/UPS and click on "Earnings Webcast."

We supplement the reporting of our financial information determined under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) with certain non-GAAP financial measures, including, as applicable, "as adjusted" operating profit, operating margin, pre-tax income, net income and earnings per share. We believe that these adjusted measures provide meaningful information to assist investors and analysts in understanding our financial results and assessing our prospects for future performance. We believe these adjusted financial measures are important indicators of our recurring operations because they exclude items that may not be indicative of or are unrelated to our core operating results, and provide a better baseline for analyzing trends in our underlying businesses. Furthermore, we use these adjusted financial measures to determine awards for our management personnel under our incentive compensation plans. We also provide the amount of our free cash flow to supplement our cash flow determined under GAAP. We define free cash flow as net cash from operating activities adjusted for capital expenditures, proceeds from disposals of property, plant and equipment, net change in finance receivables and other investing activities. We believe free cash flow is an important measure in assessing the generation of cash for discretionary investments and dividends.

In the first quarter of 2007, we recorded a $221 million pre-tax impairment charge related to aircraft and a $68 million pre-tax charge related to cash payouts and the acceleration of stock compensation and certain retiree healthcare benefits for employees who accepted a voluntary separation opportunity. We presented first quarter 2007 operating profit, operating margin, pre-tax income, net income and earnings per share excluding the impact of these items as we believe these adjusted measures better enable shareowners to focus on period-over-period operating performance. The underlying matters that produced the impairment charge and the charge related to the voluntary separation opportunity were unique, and we do not believe they are reflective of the types of charges that will affect future anticipated results.

Because non-GAAP financial measures are not standardized, it may not be possible to compare these financial measures with other companies' non-GAAP financial measures having the same or similar names. These adjusted financial measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for GAAP operating profit, operating margin, net income and earnings per share, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures. These non-GAAP financial measures reflect an additional way of viewing aspects of our operations that, when viewed with our GAAP results and the preceding reconciliations to corresponding GAAP financial measures, provide a more complete understanding of our business. We strongly encourage investors to review our financial statements and publicly-filed reports in their entirety and not to rely on any single financial measure.

Except for historical information contained herein, the statements made in this release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of UPS and its management regarding the company's strategic directions, prospects and future results, involve certain risks and uncertainties. Certain factors may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements, including economic and other conditions in the markets in which we operate, governmental regulations, our competitive environment, strikes, work stoppages and slowdowns, increases in aviation and motor fuel prices, cyclical and seasonal fluctuations in our operating results, and other risks discussed in the company's Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which discussions are incorporated herein by reference.



                     United Parcel Service, Inc.
               Selected Financial Data - First Quarter
                             (unaudited)


                                        Three Months
                                            Ended
                                          March 31,         Change
                                      ----------------- --------------
                                        2008     2007      $      %
                                      -------- -------- ------- ------
(amounts in millions, except per
 share data)
Statement of Income Data:
Revenue:
  U.S. Domestic Package               $ 7,735  $ 7,552  $  183    2.4%
  International Package                 2,759    2,385     374   15.7%
  Supply Chain & Freight                2,181    1,969     212   10.8%
                                      -------- -------- -------
  Total revenue                        12,675   11,906     769    6.5%

Operating expenses:
  Compensation and benefits             6,500    6,341     159    2.5%
  Other                                 4,682    4,207     475   11.3%
                                      -------- -------- -------
  Total operating expenses             11,182   10,548     634    6.0%

Operating profit:
  U.S. Domestic Package                   959      941      18    1.9%
  International Package                   421      371      50   13.5%
  Supply Chain & Freight                  113       46      67  145.7%
                                      -------- -------- -------
  Total operating profit                1,493    1,358     135    9.9%

Other income (expense):
  Investment income                        57       14      43  307.1%
  Interest expense                       (134)     (49)    (85) 173.5%
                                      -------- -------- -------
  Total other income (expense)            (77)     (35)    (42) 120.0%
                                      -------- -------- -------
Income before income taxes              1,416    1,323      93    7.0%

Income tax expense                        510      480      30    6.3%
                                      -------- -------- -------
Net income                            $   906  $   843  $   63    7.5%
                                      ======== ======== =======

Net income as a percentage of revenue     7.1%     7.1%

Per share amounts
  Basic earnings per share            $  0.87  $  0.79  $ 0.08   10.1%
  Diluted earnings per share          $  0.87  $  0.78  $ 0.09   11.5%

Weighted-average shares outstanding
  Basic                                 1,037    1,070     (33)  -3.1%
  Diluted                               1,044    1,075     (31)  -2.9%

As adjusted income data:
Operating profit:
  U.S. Domestic Package (1)           $   959  $ 1,153  $ (194) -16.8%
  International Package (1)               421      440     (19)  -4.3%
  Supply Chain & Freight (1)              113       54      59  109.3%
                                      -------- -------- -------
    Total operating profit              1,493    1,647    (154)  -9.4%

Income before income taxes (1)        $ 1,416  $ 1,612  $ (196) -12.2%
Net income (2)                        $   906  $ 1,027  $ (121) -11.8%
Basic earnings per share (2)          $  0.87  $  0.96  $(0.09)  -9.4%
Diluted earnings per share (2)        $  0.87  $  0.96  $(0.09)  -9.4%


(1) First quarter 2007 adjusted operating profit and income before
 income taxes exclude an impairment charge on Boeing 727 and 747
 aircraft, and related engines and parts, of $221 million ($159
 million U.S. Domestic Package and $62 million International Package),
 due to the acceleration of the planned retirement of these aircraft.

First quarter 2007 adjusted operating profit and income before income
 taxes also exclude a charge related to the special voluntary
 separation opportunity ("SVSO"), which was accepted by 195, or 30%,
 of the eligible employees. We recorded a charge to expense of $68
 million ($53 million U.S. Domestic Package, $7 million International
 Package, and $8 million Supply Chain & Freight), to reflect the cash
 payout and the acceleration of stock compensation and certain retiree
 healthcare benefits under the SVSO program.

(2) First quarter net income and earnings per share amounts exclude
 the after-tax impact of the charges described in (1), which total
 $184 million.


Certain prior year amounts have been reclassified to conform to the
 current year presentation.


                     United Parcel Service, Inc.
               Selected Operating Data - First Quarter
                             (unaudited)


                                     Three Months Ended
                                         March 31,          Change
                                     ------------------  -------------
                                       2008      2007     $/ #     %
                                     ---------  -------  ------  -----

Revenue (in millions):
U.S. Domestic Package:
  Next Day Air                         $ 1,638  $ 1,653  $ (15)  -0.9%
  Deferred                                 805      802      3    0.4%
  Ground                                 5,292    5,097    195    3.8%
                                     ---------  -------  ------
    Total U.S. Domestic Package          7,735    7,552    183    2.4%
International Package:
  Domestic                                 583      511     72   14.1%
  Export                                 2,022    1,747    275   15.7%
  Cargo                                    154      127     27   21.3%
                                     ---------  -------  ------
    Total International Package          2,759    2,385    374   15.7%
Supply Chain & Freight:
  Forwarding and Logistics               1,563    1,386    177   12.8%
  Freight                                  513      488     25    5.1%
  Other                                    105       95     10   10.5%
                                     ---------  -------  ------
    Total Supply Chain & Freight         2,181    1,969    212   10.8%
                                     ---------  -------  ------
Consolidated                           $12,675  $11,906  $ 769    6.5%
                                     =========  =======  ======

Consolidated volume (in millions)          968      968      -    0.0%

Operating weekdays                          64       64

Average Daily Package Volume (in
 thousands):
U.S. Domestic Package:
  Next Day Air                           1,199    1,246    (47)  -3.8%
  Deferred                                 909      936    (27)  -2.9%
  Ground                                11,139   11,107     32    0.3%
                                     ---------  -------  ------
    Total U.S. Domestic Package         13,247   13,289    (42)  -0.3%
International Package:
  Domestic                               1,101    1,114    (13)  -1.2%
  Export                                   778      722     56    7.8%
                                     ---------  -------  ------
    Total International Package          1,879    1,836     43    2.3%
                                     ---------  -------  ------
Consolidated                            15,126   15,125      1    0.0%
                                     =========  =======  ======

Average Revenue Per Piece:
U.S. Domestic Package:
  Next Day Air                         $ 21.35  $ 20.73  $0.62    3.0%
  Deferred                               13.84    13.39   0.45    3.4%
  Ground                                  7.42     7.17   0.25    3.5%
    Total U.S. Domestic Package           9.12     8.88   0.24    2.7%
International Package:
  Domestic                                8.27     7.17   1.10   15.3%
  Export                                 40.61    37.81   2.80    7.4%
    Total International Package          21.66    19.22   2.44   12.7%
Consolidated                           $ 10.68  $ 10.13  $0.55    5.4%
                                     =========  =======  ======


Certain prior year amounts have been reclassified to conform to the
 current year presentation.


                     United Parcel Service, Inc.
                   Reconciliation of Free Cash Flow
                             (unaudited)


                                                         Preliminary
                                                         Year-to-Date
(amounts in millions)                                   March 31, 2008
                                                        --------------
Net cash from operations                                       $3,307
Capital expenditures                                             (661)
Proceeds from disposals of PP&E                                    56
Net change in finance receivables                                 (57)
Other investing activities                                       (180)
                                                        --------------
  Free cash flow                                               $2,465
                                                        ==============


Amounts are subject to reclassification.

Source: UPS