J.B. Hunt Transport Services beat third-quarter expectations Tuesday after the market closed, reporting earnings per share of $1.49, 8 cents ahead of the consensus estimate but 31 cents lower year over year.
The multimodal transportation provider’s intermodal segment reported no y/y change in revenue as a 5% increase in loads was offset by an equal decline in revenue per load. The volume increase was approximately half the increase in total intermodal traffic reported by the U.S. Class I railroads during the quarter.
J.B. Hunt (NASDAQ: JBHT) said intermodal demand improved as the quarter progressed, partly due to normal seasonal patterns as well as double-digit volume growth on eastbound transcontinental lanes out of Southern California. Compared with the second quarter, intermodal loads increased 10%.
A 92.8% operating ratio (operating expenses expressed as a percentage of revenue) deteriorated 100 basis points y/y but was 10 bps better than the second-quarter mark. Equipment repositioning costs and driver hiring costs ahead of peak season were some of the culprits.
Operating losses in the company’s brokerage segment narrowed during the period. Integrated Capacity Solutions reported a $3.3 million loss in the quarter, a $10 million improvement from the second quarter and roughly one-third the loss booked in the year-ago quarter.
Revenue in the segment was down 7% y/y as a 10% drop in volumes was partially offset by a 3% increase in revenue per load.
Shares of JBHT were up 8.1% in after-hours trading on Tuesday.
J.B. Hunt will host a call at 5 p.m. EDT on Tuesday to discuss third-quarter results.
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