MONDOVI, Wis - Marten Transport, Ltd. (Nasdaq:MRTN), a leader in the time- and temperature-sensitive transportation industry, has been named to the Forbes Magazine list of the 200 Best Small Companies for the fourth time in the past five years.
Described by Forbes.com as a "robust, fundamentally disciplined public outfit," Marten Transport has spent the last two years in a growth mode despite an industry downturn. The carrier has opened numerous new terminals and expanded its regional network to better serve customers and accommodate more driver-friendly schedules.
"This acknowledgment from Forbes is a great honor for us," said Marten's Director of Recruiting Tim Norlin. "It confirms that we've been doing things right in a challenging business environment. This recognition is the result of our hard-working, committed drivers, contractors, employees and management team that have helped make Marten a success."
The Forbes list of the 200 Best Small Companies in America begins with a search for companies that show both sales and earnings growth. Candidates must have annual revenue between $5 million and $750 million, be publicly traded for at least a year and have a stock price no lower than $5. Rankings are based on earnings growth, sales growth and return on equity in the past 12 months and over five years. Forbes also compared the stock performance of each company with that of its peers. Shares of last year's list members outpaced those on the Russell Index, a benchmark used by institutional investors, by 10 percentage points.
Marten Transport, Ltd. was founded in 1946 as a small dairy transportation service. Today the company hauls freight across the United States and Canada for some of the most successful companies in the world. It specializes in transporting frozen food, beverages, pharmaceuticals and other consumer-packaged goods that require a temperature-sensitive or insulated environment.
The company operates more than 2,459 tractors and 4,055 trailers. It employs more than 2,900 people and is headquartered in Mondovi, Wis.
