• Sea Logistics EBIT: CHF198 million in Q4, a 23% year-over-year improvement excluding one-off costs.

• Sea Logistics Volume: Down 1% for the year, up 1% excluding deselected volumes.

• Sea Logistics Yield: CHF464 million per TEU in Q4, down 6% sequentially, up 8% year over year.

• Air Logistics EBIT: CHF148 million in Q4, a 6% year-over-year growth excluding one-off costs.

• Air Logistics Volume Growth: 6% in 2024, 5% growth in Q4.

• Air Logistics Yield: CHF89 per 100 kilo in Q4, an 8% sequential increase, 11% year-over-year improvement.

• Road Logistics EBIT: CHF10 million in Q4, nearly half the prior year's result excluding one-off costs.

• Road Logistics Volume: Increased by 5% in 2024, 8% in Q4, excluding acquisitions, volume declined by 3% year over year.

• Contract Logistics EBIT: CHF65 million in Q4, an 18% year-over-year gain; full year EBIT CHF227 million.

• Free Cash Flow Conversion: 94% in Q4, excluding seasonal impact of Apex.

• Dividend Proposal: CHF8.25 per share for 2024.

• Warning! GuruFocus has detected 5 Warning Sign with SE.

Release Date: March 04, 2025

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

Positive Points

• Kuehne + Nagel International AG (KHNGF) achieved a solid financial result in 2024, with volumes improving in the second half of the year.

• The company returned to year-on-year EBIT growth in the second half of 2024, supported by effective cost management.

• Sea Logistics produced an EBIT improvement of 23% year over year in Q4, excluding one-off costs.

• Air Logistics achieved a 6% EBIT growth in Q4, with total volumes growing by 6% in 2024.

• Contract Logistics delivered a record high EBIT result of CHF65 million in Q4, marking an 18% year-over-year gain.

Negative Points

• Overall volumes in Sea Logistics were down 1% for the year, despite a 1% increase excluding deselected volumes.

• Average yields across the year were down by 10%, with a 6% sequential decline in Q4.

• Road Logistics faced persistent headwinds, with Q4 EBIT nearly half of the prior year's result, excluding one-off costs.

• Organic gross profit in Road Logistics declined by 5% in Q4 due to negative yield developments and capacity cost pressure.

• The overall results for 2024 remained roughly 10% below the previous year, excluding a currency headwind in excess of 2%.

Q & A Highlights

Q: How should we think about the contribution from IMC to your gross profits and EBIT this year, and how might trade tariffs and changes in the US de minimis exemption impact market volumes and yields? A: Stefan Paul, CEO: The contribution per container unit from IMC will be between USD50 and USD60 on a gross profit level. Regarding the de minimis exemption, the impact on Kuehne+Nagel's volume is minimal as e-commerce represents a single-digit percentage of our airfreight network. While market volumes might decrease, the impact on Kuehne+Nagel will be limited.