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Trinity (TRN) Q4 Earnings Surpass Estimates, Revenues Miss

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Trinity Industries, Inc. (TRN - Free Report) reported mixed fourth-quarter 2022 results wherein earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate but revenues missed the same.

Quarterly earnings of 44 cents per share outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny and improved more than 100% year over year. The bottom line was backed by improved operating results and the impact of lower diluted weighted average shares outstanding.

Total revenues of $591.2 million fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $881.9 million but grew 25.2% year over year. The top line was aided by a higher volume of external deliveries and improved pricing in the Rail Products Group.

Trinity Industries, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Trinity Industries, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Trinity Industries, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Trinity Industries, Inc. Quote

The Railcar Leasing and Management Services Group generated revenues of $197.4 million, up 8.9% year over year. Segmental revenues were boosted by higher utilization, increased lease fleet size and improved renewal rates.

Revenues in the Rail Products Group (before eliminations) totaled $655.7 million, up 63.1% year over year. Higher delivery volumes, favorable pricing and product mix boosted segmental revenues. Segmental operating profit was $18.6 million compared with $13.4 million in the year-ago period.

Trinity exited the fourth quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $79.6 million compared with $58.5 million at the end of September 2022. Debt totaled $5,607.6 million as of Dec 31, 2022, compared with $5,493.7 million at the end of September 2022.

During the fourth quarter, Trinity repurchased almost $12 million of shares in the open market under its authorized share repurchase program. TRN’s board of directors terminated this share repurchase program effective Dec 8, 2022, and the remaining authorization of $21 million under this program expired unused.

In December 2022, TRN’s board of directors approved a new share repurchase program effective Dec 9, 2022, with no expiration. The new share repurchase program allows TRN to repurchase up to $250 million of its common stock.

In December 2022, TRN’s board of directors also declared a dividend hike of almost 13%, thereby raising the quarterly cash dividend from 23 cents per share to 26 cents per share.

During 2022, Trinity rewarded its shareholders with dividends worth $76.9 million and repurchased shares worth $51.8 million.

For 2023, Trinity anticipates earnings in the range of $1.50-$1.70 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.89 lies above the guidance.

Currently, Trinity carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of Other Transportation Companies

United Airlines’ (UAL - Free Report) fourth-quarter 2022 earnings of $2.46 per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.07. In the year-ago quarter, UAL incurred a loss of $1.60 per share when air-travel demand was not as buoyant as in the current scenario. The fourth quarter of 2022 was the third consecutive profitable quarter at UAL since the onset of the pandemic.

Operating revenues of $12,400 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $12,230 million. UAL’s revenues increased 51.37% year over year owing to upbeat air-travel demand. The optimistic air-travel demand scenario is also evident from the fact that total operating revenues increased 13.9% from fourth-quarter 2019 (pre-coronavirus) levels.

Delta Air Lines’ (DAL - Free Report) fourth-quarter 2022 earnings (excluding 19 cents from non-recurring items) of $1.48 per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.29 per share. DAL reported earnings of 22 cents per share a year ago, dull in comparison to the current scenario, as air-travel demand was not so buoyant then.

DAL reported revenues of $13,435 million, which also surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $13,030.3 million. Driven by the high air-travel demand, total revenues increased more than 41.87% on a year-over-year basis.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc.’s (JBHT - Free Report) fourth-quarter 2022 earnings of $1.92 per share missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.45 and declined 16% year over year.

JBHT’s total operating revenues of $3,649.62 million also lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3,796.8 million. The top line jumped 4.4% year over year. Total operating revenues, excluding fuel surcharges, fell 2.9% year over year.

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