Losses

Yea. Something might be coming through the wire. They could be possibly in talks.

 

It seems margins are improving and better utility of assets are being implimeneted. Perhaps financial counciling has taken hold. A potential turn may be underway.

I don't know anything about Grace and Smith Inc. I'll have to read up on them. For the moment, they appear to be financiers.

Like I said in another thread. Swift and a couple other stocks (recently) took off flying and are in a major hiring spree. The ground must be rumbling for a reason.

Everything I learned in skool says the economy is better than news projects. Transportation index is soaring. Packaging companies are hiring. Perhaps we are on the cusp of a meaningful economic upswing!

Here are a couple links to some technical analysis I do on the side. I will include USAK in the PACCAR/Beam Global section of the studies. http://scharts.co/W2ddWo And here is the actual lead page http://stockcharts.com/public/1164099

Be safe

ez

 

Grace & Smith may be similar to Romney's old Bain Capitol; they invest/buy into failing companies & try to bring them back to life. Sometimes they are seen vicious in that they protect their investment and try to save the company and as many jobs as they can. They get a bad rap even though some jobs are lost and some are saved which is better than ALL jobs being lost.

I don't trust reports on the economy; manufacturing isn't coming back because the educational system doesn't prepare Americans for high-tech factory equipment that must be used now. Boeing & Lockheed are moving their R&D to Poland, believe it or not, and much of aircraft maintenance is outsourced to South America. Americas education system is focused on political correctness, diversity & sports and that doesn't translate into decent jobs. Sad.

 

Boeing has been expanding in the US....... Charleston, SC for example. The giant corporations are international.

Unfortunately, unions have been pricing many skilled labor jobs out of their place. The companies who can take advantage of international comparisons will as long as they prove viable. Fortunately, trucking is not one of those.

I tend to believe the collegiate level of education in the US is fine. Students from all over the world come here to study. And many employers are waiting at the skool doors to hire them. I think most of our problems are parents dropping the tight reins on their kids and not driving education upon them at early ages. Those wanting a better education must take charge and make it happen...... not complain that homework is too this or that or costs are what they are. Complaining only promotes discord and failure. If you want it, do it.

When I began my tenure at a Fortune 200 packaging company many years ago, a high end flexo would produce 3000 case cartons an hour. A high end flexo today running the same carton will produce 20,000 cartons. That is the result of education and skilled labor. Technology is all around us enhancing some aspect of everything we do. Unfortunately, we have not adjusted to much of it in that excessive labor be absorbed in some other venue. It is people not looking up or ahead...... not a boogie man holding everyone back.

Grace and Smith are major USAK holders now. We need watch.

 

I have to disagree with you on the collegiate skills. Its not that our post-secondary institutions are not up to par, its that the general laziness has seeped into even those seeking higher degrees. When I was an Army recruiter, we had a medium sized university in our area. We of course tried to pick up high school students as they graduated, then again potential college dropouts, and finally college grads as officer candidates. I used to do workshops and presentations at both high schools and at the university as a side project geared towards increasing your marketability and hiring potential. One of the biggest problems I see with young people today is that they pursue "useless" degree paths and too often with unrealistic expectations. The local university would graduate 100-200 students every semester with such degrees as "Business Management" and "Political Science." The problem with those is that we've been in an economic slump since at least 2007 and students are still pursuing BM. They don't understand why they can go to interview after interview and not be hired. What I tried to explain to them is that very few companies are hiring at all right now and those that are, look for either blue collar labor or skilled technicians. I almost begged and pleaded with people to pursue degrees in the sciences and engineering fields but most avoid them. Then you get the Sociology and Philosophy majors. They just couldn't seem to grasp the concept that unless they found a teaching job, they were virtually unemployable in those fields.

Fewer and fewer are pursuing scientific fields and the answer I most often got was that those degrees required too many higher math classes and they didn't want that kind of workload. WTF??? Yet they all expected being hired within 6 months of graduating and most stated that they wouldn't be willing to accept a starting salarly of less than 60K per year. Thats why we are losing our high end scientific jobs to foreign students. Even those pursuing medical field work were content with being a nurse or physical therapist. Very few mentioned pre-med for MD, dentistry, or psychiatry. Why? Once again, too long in school and too much workload. Well our Asian visiting students are more than happy to take those courses and as you can see from reading the clinic names all over the US, more often than not, stay here to practice instead of going home. I don't blame them a bit. We are chronically short on advanced level health care workers and the potential income if far greater here than it would be abroad in a developing country or socialized health care system.

As far as our skilled blue collar workers go, I don't even blame the unions for the loss of those jobs. Once again, I feel that it falls back upon a generally lazy attitude and a poor public perception of blue collar work. Take a look at our industry. The longterm potential for money is great, especially if you use a company driver role to build a footprint and save up to move into being an O/O. But how many of these young brats in school now actually dream of being a truck driver when they grow up? Plumbers, electricians, welders, and the sort are all licensed professions that require schooling and pay surprisingly well, yet they are chronically short too. Simply because very few have a desire to pursue that work. We pump our kids full of BS about how all they have to do is finish high school, then college, and someday, everybody in their grad class will be a CEO of a big company. The guidance counselors at schools reinforce this even on the kids who struggle in basic math classes. With such a stack of BS piled up there is no way to overcome an unrealistic dream. Who would want to get their hands dirty when they think they can be 23-24, sitting at a desk in their own office, playing on Facebook, while sending emails telling other people what to do, and spending the weekend at the golf course or having ####tail parties at the yacht club?

 

I know Boeing has an assembly plant in SC & Airbus is building one in AL. But the R&D-Research & Development aspects are now being outsourced to Poland. I think Lockheed may have been the first to do this. Poland saw a niche that needed filling and adjusted their education to fill that niche. It requires a highly developed level of mathmatics, critical thinking, engineering, logic, etc. The department of education in Poland has a constant focus on what the world needs and adjust their education to fit those needs. America could do the same but priorities are skewed along with Political Correctness.

 

Like I said, if you want, you act.

"Laziness" is a gift granted by parents....... me included. Parents do not stay on top of children assuring class work and results are as necessary to be successful.

My original major was Computer Science. I was paying my way as I went and discovered the journey was going to be more time consuming and expensive than planned. So, I wanted a quick out. All the math I took for engineering classes offered a short trip to the degree alter with a BS in Mathematics. I got certified to teach and after three years of nonsense I went back to manufacturing and a high end private university. After another BS and MS and the demise of large scale manufacturing in medium sized cities, I now adjust again for cash flow. A return to driving is now in the cards.

My point is...... most do not plan or adjust to an ever-changing world. Liberal arts and political science graduates cater to self-interests with limited potential. Perhaps parents could have been better at guiding those outcomes. My story is one of constant adjustment and poor planning.

Ask DuPont, Google, Hewlett Packard, GE and 3M why the majority of new incoming graduate employees are from India, China, Pakistan, Korea and other foriegn countries. Students are groomed from elementary school to perform in a pre-chosen discipline. Parents are the key ingredient. They are the guide. They are the insurance assuring that success. Few Americans go to those lengths. Our universities are sought by the best students in the world. Our universities produce the best results anywhere.

What have we heard for years? Get math and science degrees.

Albeit, the US is conciously implimenting plans to increase and enhance technical programs in lower level colleges - technical degrees. Unfotunately, most things our government does take more time than what seems appropriate....... although our increase in oil production is a direct result of this plan.

Trust me...... after dealing with kids and parents as I have, most of our problems are at home. Low guidance from parents, poor model behavior, etc create most of the problems we have........ whether it be in academics, social behavior or most anything. another easy out.

 

Most people rely on financial reports to determine investments. After I got stung with WorldCom I went a different route. I supplement my income with the technical side.......... Not for everyone. It is terribly misunderstood. The charts can offer a snapshot for those unknowing of the science. Those pages are updated automatically by the second and scans are made by me on a daily basis. No hocus-pocus.

USAK now has my interest, especially with me nearly being an employee.

USA Trucking appears to have acknowledged being in trouble and perhaps that trouble is beyond their scope or capacity to negate. Seeking council is a first major step in correcting it. While the latest report remains negative, it does show marked improvement. By reading threads here it can be seen efforts are being made in specific route selections and their competitiveness.......

USA just had a new stake made in its ownership of 10%. The company means something to someone. This will require watching.

The transportation index has been rising. USAK has been rising with it. That means the investing community believes the company has potential in the current environment. These indices as is indicate an economy stronger than many project. The Dow recently made an all-time high, although i do not believe the Dow is a strong indication of anything - some do and will.

All things considered, debt is always ugly, but obvious efforts are being made to improve financial conditions....... and signs are visible those efforts are being successful. Is it enough? Stay tuned. LOL

Be safe

ez