ArcBest upped the second-quarter outlook for both its asset-based and asset-light units Thursday after the market closed.
LTL margin guidance raised
ArcBest (NASDAQ: ARCB) raised the margin forecast for its asset-based unit, which includes less-than-truckload subsidiary ABF Freight, by 200 bps at both ends of the range. It’s now calling for the operating ratio (inverse of operating margin) to improve by 600 to 700 basis points sequentially. That implies a 90.8% adjusted OR, which would be 200 bps better year over year.
(The unit normally sees just 350 bps of sequential margin improvement from the first to the second quarter.)
“This outlook reflects disciplined execution on pricing initiatives, the impact of recent fuel price movements, and continued progress on cost optimization, network efficiency, and technology driven productivity initiatives,” stated a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Less-than-truckload fuel surcharge mechanisms include a step function as diesel prices rise, typically resulting in margin accretion.
April slightly ahead of expectations; TL shipments push tonnage higher
Final asset-based results for April came in modestly better than expected. Revenue per day was up 10.9% y/y versus management’s preliminary call for a 9% increase. Both tonnage and yield outperformed expectations.
The update showed revenue per day in May was 9% higher y/y, with tonnage and yield each increasing 5%.
May’s tonnage growth was driven by a 9% increase in weight per shipment, which was partially offset by a 4% decline in daily shipments. ArcBest said shipment weights are up as more truckload shipments are in the network.
Higher diesel prices are driving larger fuel surcharges, positively impacting ArcBest’s revenue-based metrics. Revenue per shipment was up 13% y/y through the first two months of the quarter due to both heavier shipment weights and higher fuel prices. Yield was up 5% but closer to flat excluding fuel surcharges. (Higher shipment weights negatively impact the yield metric.)
The company said on the first-quarter call at the end of April that contractual rate increases averaged 6.3% in the period (up 10.3% on a two-year-stacked comp). It also said that TL rate increases should step up from the low- to mid-single-digit range seen in the first quarter to a low- to mid-double-digit range in the second and third quarters.
Tonnage growth accelerated on a two-year-stacked comparison. Tonnage was up 11.3% in May following a 9.7% increase in April.
Manufacturing complex signaling recovery
Industrial activity improved for a fifth consecutive month in May, according to manufacturing data released Monday.
The Institute for Supply Management’s Manufacturing PMI registered a 54 reading for the month, which was 130 bps higher than April, and the highest reading in four years. (A reading above 50 signals expansion, while one below 50 indicates contraction.) The subindex for new orders—an indicator of future activity—registered a 56.8 reading, which was 270 bps higher sequentially.
Inflections in ISM data usually lead LTL volumes by a few months.
3PL unit looking up
ArcBest’s asset-light segment, which includes truck brokerage, is now forecast to record adjusted operating income of $3 million to $5 million in the second quarter. The updated guidance is $2 million higher at each end of the range.
Quarter-to-date, daily shipments are up 15% y/y (increased managed transportation demand) and revenue per shipment is up 11% (higher fuel costs and TL rates).
Shares of ARCB were up 5.5% in early trading on Friday compared to the S&P 500, which was off 0.9%. ArcBest’s stock has doubled since the beginning of the year.
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