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Dive Brief:
- PAM transport services showed functional damage $700,000 in Q1 as a tough market continued and weather disrupted fleet operations.
- The company’s TL operating ratio, excluding charter fuel, increased from 103.7% in the fourth quarter to 104.2% in the first quarter. This is also higher than a year ago, when its quarterly operating ratio was 99.3%.
- The TL market “has been characterized by the continued success of shippers in leveraging a market of excess capacity to their advantage to achieve prices at or below cost,” President Joe Vitiritto said in a press release.
Dive Insight:
PAM’s logistics unit helped cushion the blow to the company’s revenue for the quarter, lifting its overall operating ratio to 100.4%.
Its logistics unit’s operating income also improved slightly from the fourth quarter to the first quarter, rising from less than $53 million to nearly $58.8 million.
The carrier faced challenges last year with United Auto Workers strikes affecting manufacturers and suppliers.
As fares refused to rise, extreme winter weather in January posed another major challenge for carriers. Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings noted how subsequent earnings were unable to offset losses from significantly impacted LTL volumes.
In contrast, the company’s operating income for the first quarter of 2023 was just under $8.5 million.
JB Hunt Transport Services also had a strong Q1, reporting that its quarterly operating income for its trucking unit dropped 75% year over year to $1.2 million.
“Interest rates have and continue to be under a lot of pressure,” said Brad Hicks, JB Hunt’s EVP of people and president of highway services. earnings call. “While some of the tight weather in January pressured gross margins, looser capacity in February and March helped the recovery, to some extent.”