Factors To Know Ahead Of XPO Logistics' (XPO) Q1 Earnings

XPO Logistics (NYSE:XPO) is scheduled to release its first-quarter 2019 financial numbers on May 1, after market close.

In the last reported quarter, the company reported lower-than-expected earnings due to high operating expenses. In fact, XPO Logistics’ bottom line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the trailing four quarters, the average miss being 1.5%.

Let’s delve deep to unearth the factors that are likely to influence this Greenwich, CT-based company’s results in the soon-to-be-reported quarter.

We expect the company’s logistics segment to perform well in the first quarter backed by the rising demand for e-commerce. Also, the company's last mile business unit is anticipated to deliver solid performance in the quarter. Meanwhile, XPO Logistics is constantly looking to bolster its operations related to last-mile services through acquisitions.

As the online shopping space is growing by leaps and bounds with every passing day, it is obvious that growth in last-mile deliveries is outpacing traditional freight.The lucrativeness of this avenue can be made out from the fact that it generated revenues of $8.9 billion in 2018. Apart from XPO Logistics, other prominent players in this space include Ryder System (NYSE:R) and J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) .

Moreover, the company’s transportation segment is likely to aid the soon-to-be-reported quarter’s resultsowing to less-than-truckload operations in North America and Europe. European truckload and freight brokerage are also anticipated to boost segmental performance.

These apart, XPO Logistics’ efforts to reward its shareholders are impressive. In February 2019, the company's board of directors approved a new share buyback program of up to $1.5 billion of XPO common stock. We expect a further update on this issue on the first-quarter conference call.

Another important development in the first-quarter period (January-March) was the inclusion of thisZacks Rank #3 (Hold) in the prestigious S&P MidCap 400 index, replacing Big Lots (NYSE:BIG) . We expect a further update on this issue on the first-quarter conference call. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here .

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