HomeNewsSchool Bus Contractor Student Transportation Inc. Opens Trading on NASDAQ

School Bus Contractor Student Transportation Inc. Opens Trading on NASDAQ

Denis Gallagher, chairman and CEO of Student Transportation Inc. (STI), heralded his company’s new listing on the Nasdaq by ringing the opening bell Tuesday, signaling the start of the day’s trading.

Student Transportation Inc. (STI) entered the U.S. stock market on Sept. 6, 2011, trading under the symbol “STB.” Company CEO and Chairman Denis Gallagher (front-center) rang the bell in Nasdaq’s opening ceremony. STI is now dual-listed on Nasdaq and the Toronto Stock Exchange, where it has paid 79 consecutive monthly dividends since going public in 2004.

Gallagher founded the school bus contractor in 1997. STI was listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange in December 2004 under the symbol “STB,” the same as the listing on the Nasdaq Global Select Market.

The company is the third largest contractor in North America. Stock prices opened at $6.90 per share.

“We’ve grown nicely, you know, certainly over the last six and a half years, seven years, and this is an opportunity for us to bring our growth and dividends to the U.S. (market),” Gallagher told School Transportation News last week. “We think investors are going to like the growth story. They’re going to certainly like the simple business, and they’re going to like the dividends.”

The Nasdaq listing allows the Wall, N.J., based company to access capital in the states, and STI said three new acquisitions and 10 contract conversions at the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year will add more than $20 million in revenue. About 80 percent of STI’s total revenue is generated in the United States, and with about two-thirds of school districts still owning and operating their own school buses in this sluggish economy, Gallagher said the company was better positioned to to realize at least 12 percent year-over-year growth in fiscal year 2012.

“There is an opportunity for us to help school districts with who need capital, who need to get out of the business, and/or need to replace their fleets or have operating costs savings. So this really gives us the opportunity to raise additional money,” said Gallagher. “When we want to raise money, we can go to the market. When the school district wants to raise money, they’ve got to go to their taxpayers, and they’ve got to increase taxes. That’s just not in favor these days.”

STI’s recent acquisitions include Schumacher Bus Lines and S & K Transportation Ltd. Ontario, Canada, and A& B Bus Company in Irwindale, Calif. STI has also won new contracts in New York, Vermont and New Hampshire, Southern California, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Northern Ontario. All told, the company operates locations in 12 states and one Canadian province.

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