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Here's Why You Should Give Old Dominion Stock a Miss Now

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Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (ODFL - Free Report) is currently mired in multiple headwinds, which, we believe, have made it an unimpressive investment option.

Let’s delve deeper.

Southward Earnings Estimate Revision:The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter 2024 earnings has been revised 15.6% downward over the past 90 days. For 2024, the consensus mark for earnings has moved 4.4% south in the same time frame. The bearish alterations in estimate revisions underscore a notable decline in brokers' confidence in the stock.

Weak Zacks Rank and Style Score: ODFL currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). The company’s current Value Score of F shows its unattractiveness.

Unimpressive Price Performance: ODFL has gained 10.5% over the past year, underperforming its industry’s growth of 13.8%.

Zacks Investment Research Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Earnings Expectations: Downbeat earnings expectations cast a shadow over a company’s prospects. For fourth-quarter 2024, ODFL’s earnings are expected to decline 19.73% year over year. For 2024, ODFL’s earnings are expected to decline 3.55% year over year.

Other Headwinds:ODFL is currently suffering from revenue weakness as geopolitical uncertainty and high inflation continue to hurt consumer sentiment and growth expectations. The higher-than-expected CPI reading for September shows that we are not yet out of the woods as far as inflation is concerned.

Due to top-line weakness and cost inflation, the operating ratio remains above 70, despite ODFL's cost-cutting initiatives. Also, low fuel surcharge revenues are hurting ODFL’s yields. The combination of economic uncertainty, weak demand and cost escalation have cast a shadow over ODFL's investment prospects. So, we encourage investors to avoid the shares.

Stocks to Consider

A couple of better-ranked stocks from the Zacks Transportation sector are C.H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW - Free Report) and Wabtec Corporation (WAB - Free Report) . Each stock presently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

CHRW has an impressive earnings surprise history. The company's earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters (missed the mark in the remaining quarter), delivering an average surprise of 10.29%.

CHRW has an expected earnings growth rate of 32.42% for 2024. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CHRW 2024 earnings has been revised 7.3% upward over the past 90 days. Shares of CHRW have gained 26.2% so far this year.

WAB has an impressive earnings surprise history. The company's earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the trailing four quarters (missed the mark in the remaining quarter), delivering an average surprise of 9.46%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for WAB’s 2024 earnings has been revised 2.5% upward over the past 90 days. WAB has an expected earnings growth rate of 28.55% for 2024. Shares of WAB have gained 58.5% so far this year.


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C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. (CHRW) - free report >>

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (ODFL) - free report >>

Wabtec (WAB) - free report >>

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