With uncertainty in global trade set to compound the struggles already endured by many logistics companies amid a nearly three-year freight recession, the pressure is on for transportation and trucking provider J.B. Hunt.
As J.B. Hunt’s customers currently plan for multiple “what-if” scenarios in the wake of President Donald Trump’s spate of tariffs, “most of them are waiting for the dust to settle on their short- and long-term business strategies,” said Spencer Frazier, executive vice president of sales and marketing, in an earnings call.
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Frazier acknowledged that some customers are considering ways to alter their supply chain freight flows and their country-of-origin sourcing, but that those changes would be part of “a much longer decision process.” He also noted that customers had either been pulling some cargo forward, pausing some shipments, and “possibly canceling a few.”
Darren Field, president of intermodal at J.B. Hunt, seemed to push against the idea that many customers were pulling forward shipments, indicating that the company has struggled to get direct customer feedback about the scenario. But he did not rule it out.
“We did see some pull forward out of Mexico for a short window of time last quarter,” said Field. “I think that was it’s not a big impact on our volumes, but certainly want to acknowledge that that has happened.”
And in another sign that the freight recession continues to linger, J.B. Hunt is still dealing with tepid trucking volumes that is costing the company revenue.
The truckload segment had a 2 percent increase in load volume, with the unit’s revenue per load falling 6 percent from the year prior.
“The truckload market loosened as the quarter progressed,” said Frazier. “This suggests truckload capacity continues to exceed demand.”
Total trailer count decreased by approximately 800 units as the transportation company seeks to balance capacity with demand. But despite the tariffs potentially reducing U.S. inbound cargo by as much as 20 percent in the back half of the year, according to some estimates from the National Retail Federation, J.B. Hunt doesn’t have plans to aggressively cut more capacity.
“We don’t necessarily think that reducing the amount of capacity we have is going to change the way we price…Yes, we have excess equipment today, and we have a lot of capacity to grow with our customers,” said Field. “We’re looking at options on what other ways can we use some of those assets in other parts of our business. That’s certainly something that we’re investigating.”
Given that between 20 percent and 30 percent of the intermodal segment’s volume originates on the West Coast, Field said J.B. Hunt would keep in close contact with customers and rail providers near the coast to determine where to best allocate capacity going forward.
Frazier echoed that changing the pricing strategy for J.B. Hunt is unlikely even amid the uncertainty of goods entering the U.S.
“We can’t chase business with price because of a fear that is really unknown now of such a sharp decline in imports,” said Frazier. “We just don’t even know what volumes are going to produce as those changes really impact.”
While J.B. Hunt generated better-than-expected revenue and earnings, pricing pressures and weaker volumes in the trucking and freight brokerage segments sent the company’s stock down nearly 9 percent Wednesday. This marks the lowest level for the logistics provider’s stock since November 2020.
“Seasonally lower volume and rate pressure coupled with inflationary cost headwinds more than offset our cost control and productivity improvements and weighed on margins versus the prior year period,” John Kuhlow, chief financial officer at J.B. Hunt.
The logistics company saw first-quarter revenue across the company decline 1 percent to $2.9 billion on net income of $117.7 million. Earnings dipped 4 percent to $1.17 per share.
While the intermodal business—which generates 50 percent of revenue and 53 percent of operating income for J.B. Hunt—had strong 8 percent load volume growth, the freight brokerage saw segment volume decrease 13 percent.
When asked if carriers were more willing to take on thinner margins than they have in the past, CEO Shelley Simpson acknowledged the stark reality within the North American logistics industry.
“I don’t know if I’d call it thin margins if there isn’t any margin. I’ve been here almost 31 years. I’ve never seen a recession last three years,” Simpson said. “I think everyone’s holding on. And so if that’s thinner margin at no margin, that’s the hold-on position. It is a very difficult environment that we’re operating in, and I think everyone is trying to adapt to it.”
