Old Dominion Freight Line Q3: Misses On Earnings And Revenue As Economic Headwinds Weigh

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. ODFL shares are trading lower following third-quarter results.

The company reported a revenue decline of 3.0% year-over-year to $1.470 billion, missing the consensus of $1.492 billion. EPS was $1.43, missing the consensus of $1.47.

The revenue decrease is primarily due to a 4.8% decrease in LTL tons per day, partially offset by a 1.5% increase in LTL revenue per hundredweight.

The decline in LTL tons per day is attributed to a 3.4% drop in LTL shipments per day and a 1.4% reduction in LTL weight per shipment.

LTL revenue per hundredweight, excluding fuel surcharges, rose 4.6% in the quarter.

Operating income fell 9.7% to $401.9 million, with an operating ratio of 72.7%, compared to 70.6% a year ago.

Old Dominion’s operating cash flow was $446.5 million for the third quarter and $1.3 billion for the first nine months.

As of September 30, the company had $74.2 million in cash and equivalents. Capital expenditures stood at $242.8 million in the third quarter.

For the first nine months of this year, Old Dominion returned capital to shareholders, spending $824.8 million on share repurchases, including a $200 million accelerated program, and paying $168.2 million in dividends.

Marty Freeman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Old Dominion, commented, “Old Dominion’s third quarter financial results reflect ongoing softness in the domestic economy. The challenging operating environment, and strong comparable results for the third quarter of 2023, resulted in the first year-over-year decrease in our quarterly revenue and earnings per diluted share this year.”

“The decrease in revenue had a deleveraging effect on many of our operating expenses, which contributed to the 110 basis point increase in our overhead costs as a percent of revenue. Direct operating costs also increased as a percent of revenue despite our team operating very efficiently during the third quarter.”

Investors can gain exposure to the stock via First Trust S&P 500 Diversified Dividend Aristocrats ETF IYT and ProShares Trust ProShares Supply Chain Logistics ETF SUPL.

Price Action: ODFL shares are down 5.79% at $187.99 premarket at the last check Wednesday.

Photo via Shutterstock

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