ATLANTA (AP) — UPS says its fourth-quarter profit will be smaller than expected after a rough holiday shipping season.
The package shipper said Friday it dealt with a “surge of last-minute orders” after 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.
UPS reports full results on Jan. 30.