ODFL Reports Q1 Revenue and Earnings Growth

ODFL said that its main less-than-truckload services experienced revenue growth of 1.6% to $1.45 billion from $1.42 billion during the same time last year. (Old Dominion Freight Line)

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Old Dominion Freight Line experienced growth in revenue and earnings for the first quarter of 2024, the company reported April 24.

The Thomasville, N.C.-based less-than-truckload carrier posted net income of $292.3 million, or $1.34 a diluted share, for the three months ending March 31. That compared with $285 million, $1.29, during the 2023 period. Total revenue increased 1.2% to $1.46 billion from $1.44 billion.

Old Dominion Freight Line ranks No. 10 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest for-hire carriers in North America, and is ranked No. 2 on the LTL list.

“Old Dominion’s financial results improved during the first quarter despite continued softness in the domestic economy,” President Marty Freeman said. “For the second straight quarter, both our revenue and earnings per diluted share increased on a year-over-year basis. We achieved these results by continuing to execute our long-term strategic plan.”

That plan has centered on customer service and fair pricing. The approach has resulted in a 99% on-time service rate and 0.1% claims ratio. Freeman said this has supported yield management initiatives as well as an ongoing ability to win market share.

“Our first-quarter operating ratio increased 10 basis points to 73.5% as compared to the first quarter of 2023,” Freeman said. “We improved our direct operating costs as a percent of revenue as a result of the increase in yield and our ongoing focus on operating efficiencies.”

ODFL said that its main less-than-truckload services experienced revenue growth of 1.6% to $1.45 billion from $1.42 billion during the same time last year. LTL shipments per day decreased 0.5% to 46,931 from 47,155, but revenue per shipment increased 1.3% to $482.24 from $475.88. ODFL Earnings Q1 2024

“Our overhead costs, however, increased as a percent of revenue in part due to a 50-basis point increase in our depreciation costs,” Freeman said. “The increase in depreciation reflects our commitment to consistently execute on our long-term capital expenditure strategy to support our customers’ needs and to achieve our long-term market share initiatives.”

The results were close to Wall Street expectations. Analysts had been looking for $1.33 per share and quarterly revenue of $1.47 billion, according to Zacks Consensus Estimate.

“We believe these results, and our long-term record of financial success, are grounded in our ability to execute on a proven strategic plan that has guided us through many economic cycles,” Freeman said. “While challenges from the domestic economy have persisted for longer than we originally expected, there have been some recent developments to suggest that overall demand for our service may be improving.”