The end of the earnings season is always a good time to take a step back and see who shined (and who not so much). Let’s take a look at how transportation and logistics stocks fared in Q1, starting with Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC).
The growth of e-commerce and global trade continues to drive demand for shipping services, presenting opportunities for transportation and logistics companies. The industry continues to invest in advanced technologies such as automated sorting systems and real-time tracking solutions to enhance operational efficiency. Companies that win in this space boast speed, reach, reliability, and last-mile efficiency while those who do not see their market shares diminish. Like other industrials companies, transportation and logistics companies are at the whim of economic cycles. Consumer spending, for example, can greatly impact the demand for these companies’ offerings while fuel costs influence profit margins.
The 29 transportation and logistics stocks we track reported a slower Q1. As a group, revenues missed analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.7% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was 3.5% below.
In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 4.5% on average since the latest earnings results.
Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC)
Starting with a single route from Virginia to North Carolina, Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) is a freight transportation company operating a major railroad network across the eastern United States.
Norfolk Southern reported revenues of $2.99 billion, flat year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, but overall, it was a mixed quarter for the company with a narrow beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates but a slight miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.
Norfolk Southern Total Revenue
Interestingly, the stock is up 8.8% since reporting and currently trades at $239.64.
Operating one of the youngest fleets in the industry, Scorpio Tankers (NYSE: STNG) is an international provider of marine transportation services, specializing in the shipment of refined petroleum.
Scorpio Tankers reported revenues of $204.2 million, down 47.6% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 1.7%. The business had a stunning quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.
Scorpio Tankers Total Revenue
The market seems content with the results as the stock is up 4.7% since reporting. It currently trades at $39.46.
Conducting business in over a 100 countries, Werner (NASDAQ:WERN) offers full-truckload, less-than-truckload, and intermodal delivery services.
Werner reported revenues of $712.1 million, down 7.4% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 3.4%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a miss of analysts’ Logistics revenue estimates and a significant miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.
As expected, the stock is down 5.4% since the results and currently trades at $26.16.
Covering billions of miles throughout North America, Landstar (NASDAQ:LSTR) is a transportation company specializing in freight and last-mile delivery services.
Landstar reported revenues of $1.16 billion, down 1.6% year on year. This result beat analysts’ expectations by 1.4%. More broadly, it was a mixed quarter as it also produced a decent beat of analysts’ Van Equipment revenue estimates but a miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.
The stock is down 5.7% since reporting and currently trades at $135.66.
Covering 1.6 billion loaded miles in 2023 alone, Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) offers less-than-truckload and full truckload delivery services.
Knight-Swift Transportation reported revenues of $1.82 billion, flat year on year. This number topped analysts’ expectations by 1.6%. Taking a step back, it was a satisfactory quarter as it also logged an impressive beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but EPS guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations.
The stock is up 9.8% since reporting and currently trades at $43.49.
In response to the Fed’s rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has been gradually trending down from its post-pandemic peak, trending closer to the Fed’s 2% target. Despite higher borrowing costs, the economy has avoided flashing recessionary signals. This is the much-desired soft landing that many investors hoped for. The recent rate cuts (0.5% in September and 0.25% in November 2024) have bolstered the stock market, making 2024 a strong year for equities. Donald Trump’s presidential win in November sparked additional market gains, sending indices to record highs in the days following his victory. However, debates continue over possible tariffs and corporate tax adjustments, raising questions about economic stability in 2025.
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