C.H. Robinson Q3 earnings: First look

Sequential gains a bit slower than in recent quarters, year on year starting to look better

A first look at C.H. Robinson earnings. (Photo: Jim Allen/FreightWaves)
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Key Takeaways:

  • C.H. Robinson (CHRW) reported improved Q3 2023 results, exceeding Wall Street expectations with adjusted EPS of $1.28 (beating estimates by $0.13) and revenue of $6.64 billion (beating forecasts by $100 million).
  • Despite a 5.19% year-over-year revenue decline, the company saw increases in adjusted gross profits (8.12%), income from operations (24.63%), and adjusted operating margin (to 24.5%).
  • Sequential improvements slowed compared to previous quarters, indicating a potential moderation in growth.
  • CEO Dave Bozeman highlighted ongoing efficiency initiatives, targeting over 30% compound productivity growth by the end of 2024.
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C.H. Robinson reported third-quarter earnings on Wednesday. Here are some highlights.

  • C.H. Robinson (NASDAQ: CHRW) management has been touting sequential improvements at the 3PL, because year-on-year comparisons remain weak. Wall Street has responded, with the stock price up more than 22% in the past three months. But the third quarter started to show some better numbers year on year as well.
  • Total revenues from the third quarter of 2023 were down 5.19%. But adjusted gross profits rose 8.12%. Income from operations was up 24.63%.
  • Sequential comparisons slowed after several quarters of significant increases. For example, total revenues were down 1.88% from the second quarter, and adjusted gross profits were only up 0.24%. Income from operations sequentially rose 5.15%.
  • Adjusted earnings per share of $1.28 was about 45.5% more than a year ago and about 10.1% more than the second quarter. The adjusted operating margin improved 660 basis points to 24.5%.
  • CEO Dave Bozeman has been pushing various efficiency initiatives at C.H. Robinson. He said in a prepared statement released with the earnings that “we remain on track to deliver greater than 30% compound growth in productivity over the two-year period from the end of 2022 to the end of 2024.”
  • There was little change in the stock price after earnings were released. C.H. Robinson stock closed Wednesday at $109.64, up 1.52% on the day.
  • According to SeekingAlpha, the $1.28 non-GAAP EPS figure of $1.28 beat the consensus estimate by 13 cents. The total $6.64 billion in revenue beat forecasts by $100 million. 

More articles by John Kingston

John Kingston

John has an almost 40-year career covering commodities, most of the time at S&P Global Platts. He created the Dated Brent benchmark, now the world’s most important crude oil marker. He was Director of Oil, Director of News, the editor in chief of Platts Oilgram News and the “talking head” for Platts on numerous media outlets, including CNBC, Fox Business and Canada’s BNN. He covered metals before joining Platts and then spent a year running Platts’ metals business as well. He was awarded the International Association of Energy Economics Award for Excellence in Written Journalism in 2015. In 2010, he won two Corporate Achievement Awards from McGraw-Hill, an extremely rare accomplishment, one for steering coverage of the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster and the other for the launch of a public affairs television show, Platts Energy Week.