Old Dominion Down 1.7% On Downbeat Q1 LTL Segment Update

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) has issued an update on the performance of the less-than-truckload (LTL) segment (generating major share of revenues) so far in the first quarter of 2019.

Per the company, LTL tons per day dipped 1.5% year over year in February, primarily due to a 3.6% decline in LTL weight per shipment. Reportedly, the performance has been partially supported by 2.1% rise in LTL shipments.
The bearish first-quarter picture has disappointed investors. Consequently, shares of the company have declined 1.7% at the close of business on Mar 5.

Nevertheless, LTL revenue per hundredweight rose 9.6% year over year so far this quarter. Also, the company’s revenue per day improved 7.5% year over year in February on the back of increase in LTL revenue per hundredweight.

Old Dominion is benefiting from consistent strength in the LTL segment, which contributes significantly to the top line. Evidently, during the fourth quarter of 2018, the company’s revenues improved 15.2% year over year owing to 2.9% and 12.9% rise in LTL tons and LTL revenue per hundredweight, respectively.

Due to the company’s dependence on the LTL segment, the decline in LTL tons per day does not bode well for the company.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Old Dominion currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Investors interested in the Zacks Transportation Sector may consider Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAWW) , Azul S.A. (NYSE:AZUL) and SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW) . While Atlas Air Worldwide carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), Azul and SkyWest sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

All the three stocks boast impressive earnings surprise history. Atlas Air Worldwide outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, the average being 27.9%. Azul outpaced the consensus mark in each of the trailing four quarters with an average of 97.9%. SkyWest outpaced the consensus mark in each of the trailing four quarters with an average of 16.9%.

Today's Best Stocks from Zacks

Would you like to see the updated picks from our best market-beating strategies? From 2017 through 2018, while the S&P 500 gained +15.8%, five of our screens returned +38.0%, +61.3%, +61.6%, +68.1%, and +98.3%.

This outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon. From 2000 – 2018, while the S&P averaged +4.8% per year, our top strategies averaged up to +56.2% per year.

See their latest picks free >>