In this Oct. 22, 2012 photo, a UPS driver drives after a delivery in North Andover, Mass. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Elise Amendola
January 17, 2014 - 6:00 AM
ATLANTA - UPS says its fourth-quarter profit will be smaller than expected after a rough holiday shipping season.
The package shipper said on Friday that it dealt with a "surge of last-minute orders" following a period with more online shopping than ever. Online shopping is good for UPS, but all the last-minute orders snarled its system.
It ended up hiring 30,000 more temporary workers than planned so it could get those packages delivered. Bad weather last month also hurt results.
UPS says its fourth-quarter profit will be $1.25 per share. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had been expecting $1.43 per share.
Its shares dropped 4 per cent in premarket trading Friday.
UPS reports full results on Jan. 30.
News from © The Associated Press, 2014