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Werner Q4 Earnings & Revenues Miss Estimates, Decrease Y/Y

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Werner Enterprises, Inc. (WERN - Free Report) reported disappointing fourth-quarter 2024 results wherein both earnings and revenues lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Quarterlyearnings per share (EPS) of 8 cents lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 21 cents and declined 79.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Find the latest EPS estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Total revenues of $754.7 million lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $772 million and dipped 8.2% on a year-over-year basisdue to a $52.8 million or 9% decrease in Truckload Transportation Services (TTS) revenues and a $13.8 million or 6% decline in Logistics revenues.

Adjusted operating income of $12.2 million decreased 69% year over year. Adjusted operating margin of 1.6% declined 320 basis points fromthe year-ago reported quarter.

Werner Enterprises, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Werner Enterprises, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Werner Enterprises, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Werner Enterprises, Inc. Quote

WERN's Q4 Segmental Results

Revenues in the TTS segment decreased 9% on a year-over-year basis to $527.3 million due to lower fuel surcharge revenues. Adjusted operating income of $14.6 million declined 61% year over year owing to $19 million of unfavorable claims development in the reported quarter, a smaller fleet size, and lower gains on the sale of property and equipment (down 55%). Adjusted operating margin of 2.8% declined 360 basis points.

Logistics’ revenues totaled $213.2 million, down 6% year over year. Adjusted operating income of $2.39 million declined 21% from the year-ago reported quarter. Adjusted operating margin decreased 20 basis points year over year to 1.1%.

Liquidity

As of Dec. 31, 2024, Werner had cash and cash equivalents of $40.75 million compared with $54.66 million at the prior-quarter end. Long-term debt (net of current portion) totaled $630 million at the end of the reported quarter compared with $690 million at the prior-quarter end.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, the company generated $71 million of cash from operations, and its net capital expenditures amounted to$28.7 million.

WERN did not repurchase any shares during the fourth quarter of 2024. As of Dec. 31, 2024, WERN had 3.9 million shares remaining under its share repurchase authorization.

WERN’s Outlook

For 2025, Werner anticipates TTS truck growth to improve in the range of 1-5%. Net capital expenditures are estimated to be in the range of $185-$235 million.

Under the TTS guidance, WERN projects dedicated revenues per truck per week growth to rise from breakeven to 3% in 2025. One-way Truckload revenues per total mile are predicted to improve from 1- 4%.

Full-year 2025 tax rate is anticipated to be in the range of 25%-26%.

WERN’s Zacks Rank

Currently, Werner carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

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

Q4 Performances of Other Transportation Companies

Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2024 earnings (excluding 56 cents from non-recurring items) of $1.85 per share, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.76. Earnings increased 44.5% on a year-over-year basis due to low fuel costs.

DAL’srevenues of $15.56 billion surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $14.99 billion and increased 9.4% on a year-over-year basis, driven by strong holiday travel demand. Adjusted operating revenues (excluding third-party refinery sales) totaled $14.44 billion, up 5.7% year over year. Passenger revenues, which accounted for 82.4% of total revenues, increased 5% year over year at $12.82 billion.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (JBHT - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2024 earnings per share of $1.53, which fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.62. However, the bottom line increased 4.1% on a year-over-year basis.  

JBHT’s total operating revenues of $3.15 billion narrowly beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.13 billion but declined 4.8% year over year. The decline was mainly due to lower fuel surcharge revenues and yield pressure in its Intermodal segment.

JBHT’s fourth-quarter 2024 operating revenues of $2.78 billion, excluding fuel surcharge revenue, decreased 2% from the year-ago reported quarter. Total operating income for the reported quarter increased 2% year over year to $207 million.

Alaska Air Group, Inc. (ALK - Free Report) reported solid fourth-quarter 2024results, wherein both earnings and revenues surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Quarterly earnings per share of 97 cents outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 47 cents and improved more than 100% on a year-over-year basis. The reported figure exceeded the guided range of 40-50 cents.

ALK’s bottom line benefitted from solid revenue growth, cost and operational performance throughout the quarter and holiday travel periods. ALK also benefitted from a renegotiation of certain interest payments and favorability in its fourth-quarter tax rate.

ALK’s operating revenues of $3.53 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.51 billion. The top line jumped 38.4% year over year, with passenger revenues accounting for 89.9% of the top line and increasing 37% owing to continued recovery in air-travel demand.

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