Q3 Earnings Recap: XPO (NYSE:XPO) Tops Ground Transportation Stocks

Let’s dig into the relative performance of XPO (NYSE:XPO) and its peers as we unravel the now-completed Q3 ground transportation earnings season.

The growth of e-commerce and global trade continues to drive demand for shipping services, especially last-mile delivery, presenting opportunities for ground transportation companies. The industry continues to invest in data, analytics, and autonomous fleets to optimize efficiency and find the most cost-effective routes. Despite the essential services this industry provides, ground transportation companies are still at the whim of economic cycles. Consumer spending, for example, can greatly impact the demand for these companies’ offerings while fuel costs can influence profit margins.

The 16 ground transportation stocks we track reported a softer Q3. As a group, revenues missed analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.9%.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady. On average, they are relatively unchanged since the latest earnings results.

Best Q3: XPO (NYSE:XPO)

XPO reported revenues of $2.05 billion, up 3.7% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 1.8%. Overall, it was a very strong quarter for the company with an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

Mario Harik, chief executive officer of XPO, said, “We reported strong year-over-year earnings growth in the third quarter, as we continued to improve the business in a soft freight environment. Companywide, we increased adjusted EBITDA by 20% and adjusted diluted EPS by 16%.

XPO achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat of the whole group. Unsurprisingly, the stock is up 12.3% since reporting and currently trades at $135.03.

Is now the time to buy XPO? Find out by reading the original article on StockStory, it’s free.

Covenant Logistics (NASDAQ:CVLG)

Covenant Logistics reported revenues of $287.9 million, flat year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 2.8%. The business performed better than its peers, but it was unfortunately a mixed quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates but a miss of analysts’ Freight revenue estimates.

The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 5.6% since reporting. It currently trades at $54.40.

Weakest Q3: Werner (NASDAQ:WERN)

Werner reported revenues of $745.7 million, down 8.8% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 2.6%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

As expected, the stock is down 5.7% since the results and currently trades at $36.08.

Landstar (NASDAQ:LSTR)

Landstar reported revenues of $1.22 billion, down 5.8% year on year. This number met analysts’ expectations. However, it was a softer quarter as it recorded a miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates and a miss of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The stock is down 2.7% since reporting and currently trades at $175.55.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD)

Heartland Express reported revenues of $259.9 million, down 11.9% year on year. This number came in 3.2% below analysts' expectations. Overall, it was a disappointing quarter as it also produced a significant miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

Heartland Express had the slowest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is down 2.2% since reporting and currently trades at $11.13.

Market Update

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.

This content was originally published on Stock Story