Expeditors Reports Higher Profits, Strong Revenue Growth in First Quarter
Expeditors International of Washington reported a big jump in profits in the first quarter of 2018 as demand for ocean and airfreight forwarding services grew in response to a booming global economy.
The Seattle-based company also benefited from a lower corporate tax rate in the United States.
“We continued to execute well across all of our services during the quarter,” CEO Jeffrey Musser said in a May 8 statement. “We added profitable growth from new and existing customers and benefited from favorable buying opportunities in certain markets.”
Musser
Expeditors posted net income of $135.7 million, or 76 cents per diluted share, on gross revenue of $1.85 billion in the three months ended March 31. That compares with net income of $93.3 million, or 51 cents a share, on revenue of $1.54 billion in the same period a year ago. Net revenue, which is gross revenue minus the cost of purchased transportation, was $635.8 million in the first quarter of 2018, up 21% from $527.6 million in 2017.
Musser said the volume gains and financial results are more in line with the company’s historical performance and demonstrate the ability to generate profitable growth.
“Demand has remained strong, and we have continued to invest in people, processes and technology to efficiently handle the increased volumes across all products,” Musser stated.
Total revenue from airfreight services was $731.2 million in the most recent quarter, up 18.8% from $615.5 million a year ago. Ocean freight revenue was $520.9 million in the first quarter compared with $493.8 million a year ago. Revenue from customs brokerage and other services was $602.2 million, a jump of 38.2% from $435.8 million in the first quarter of 2017.
The company’s effective tax rate for the quarter was 31.1% compared with 37.3% a year ago, reflecting the impact of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act.
Expeditors ranks No. 5 on the Transport Topics Top 50 list of largest logistics companies in North America. The company also ranks No. 6 and No. 8, respectively, on the TT list of largest airfreight and ocean freight forwarders.
