Old Dominion (ODFL) Q2 Earnings Top, Revenues Lag Estimates

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) delivered second-quarter 2019 earnings of $2.16 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.11. Moreover, the bottom line improved 8.5% year over year. Meanwhile, quarterly revenues of $1,060.7 million fell short of the consensus mark of $1,074.5 million but inched up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Results were partly affected by 6.3% decline in LTL (Less-Than-Truckload) tonnage due to soft freight environment. However, top-line growth was primarily driven by a 9.5% increase in LTL revenue per hundredweight. The major revenue generating segment — LTL services — logged revenues of $1.05 billion, up 2.8% year over year.

In the quarter under review, LTL revenue per hundredweight was up 10% excluding fuel surcharges. However, LTL shipments dipped 2.6%. Also, LTL weight per shipment slipped 3.8%. Meanwhile, operating ratio (operating expenses as a percentage of revenues) improved to 77.9% from 78.7% in the year- ago quarter on the back of greater efficiencies.

Old Dominion, carrying a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), exited the second quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $228.96 million compared with $190.28 million at the end of 2018. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. Quote

Capital expenditures in the quarter totaled $159.2 million. The company continues to expect capital expenditures of $480 million in 2019. Of the total amount, $220 million is anticipated to be spent on real estate and service center expansion while approximately $165 million and $95 million are estimated to be invested in tractors and trailers, and technology and other assets, respectively.

During the first half of the year, Old Dominion rewarded its shareholders with $192.2 million through $27.4 million in dividends and $164.7 million in buybacks.

Upcoming Releases

Investors interested in the broader Transportation sector are keenly awaiting second-quarter earnings reports from key players, namely Expeditors International of Washington, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPD) , Air Lease Corporation (NYSE:AL) and Hertz Global Holdings, Inc (NYSE:HTZ) . While Expeditors and Hertz will report financial figures on Aug 6, Air Lease will announce the same on Aug 8.

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