Horizon Lines, the second-largest ocean cargo transportation company serving Hawaii, dramatically lowered a financial loss during its fiscal second quarter from a year ago.

Charlotte, N.C.-based Horizon reported a net loss of $1.5 million for the three-month period ended June 23, down from a $46.1 million loss in the comparable period last year.

Much of the year-ago loss had to do with eliminating debt.

Excluding financial impacts outside normal operations, such as converting debt to equity, antitrust legal expenses and restructuring charges, Horizon Lines said its adjusted net loss in the recent quarter was $95,000 compared with a $14.8 million loss a year earlier.

Revenue from shipping operations was $259.8 million in the recent quarter, down 4.1 percent from $270.9 million a year earlier.

Sam Woodward, Horizon Lines president and CEO, said the company’s financial performance in the recent quarter benefited from reduced overhead, the sale of assets and other factors that were offset by higher vessel operating expenses and reduced container volume mainly due to a cutback in service on the mainland.

"Second-quarter results demonstrate that we are executing on our plan to improve Horizon Lines’ financial performance," he said in a statement.

The reduced loss in the recent quarter followed a $20.4 million net loss for the company’s fiscal first quarter that ended March 24.