J.B. Hunt's Revenue Rose 20% To $3.68 Billion, But Operating Income Rose Just 2%
Third-quarter sales climbed while purchased transportation costs grew as a share of revenue and the dedicated unit's operating income fell 22%.
J.B. Hunt Transport Services posted third-quarter revenue of $3.68 billion, up 20%, but operating income rose only 2% to $247.1 million, according to the earnings release attached to an 8-K filed Thursday. Diluted earnings per share were $1.82, against $1.76 a year earlier.
The finding: sales up fast, margin down
Net earnings were $172.4 million versus $170.8 million in the third quarter of 2025. Operating income as a share of revenue slipped to 6.7% from 7.9%.
Excluding fuel surcharges, revenue grew 13%. The company said that rise came mainly from an 8% increase in intermodal loads (freight moved partly by rail), a 27% rise in revenue per load at its Integrated Capacity Solutions brokerage unit and a 29% rise at its Truckload unit, partly offset by a 10% decline in Final Mile Services stops.
Fuel surcharge revenue was $670.8 million, compared with $385.6 million a year earlier.
The catch: costs and weak segments
Rents and purchased transportation took 47.8% of revenue, up from 43.6%. Fuel and fuel taxes rose to 7.1% of revenue from 5.4%. The company blamed the lower consolidated margin on higher purchased transportation, fuel and fuel taxes, and insurance claims as a share of gross revenue.
Segment results diverged:
- Intermodal operating income rose 18% to $147.5 million on revenue of $1.83 billion, up 20%.
- Dedicated Contract Services operating income fell 22% to $81.7 million on revenue of $960 million, up 11%, which the company tied to driver personnel, group medical, insurance premium, equipment and onboarding costs.
- Final Mile Services operating income fell 76% to $1.6 million as revenue slipped 3% to $200 million.
- Truckload operating income fell 6% to $7.0 million on revenue up 37%.
- Integrated Capacity Solutions earned $9.6 million, against a loss of $0.8 million, on revenue up 57% to $434 million.
Balance sheet and buybacks
The company bought about 704,000 shares for roughly $174 million in the quarter, leaving about $619 million under its repurchase authorization. Debt outstanding was about $1.12 billion at September 30, versus $1.60 billion a year earlier. Cash was about $4 million.
In after-hours trading Thursday, JBHT shares were at $230.19, about 2% below the regular close of $235.31.
What came before
Before the report, a FreightWaves piece carried by Yahoo Finance said J.B. Hunt told an investor conference that third-quarter earnings per share would be roughly flat from a year earlier. It also said a cost-cutting program launched about a year ago had grown past $130 million.
The company held its conference call from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. CDT on Thursday, with a webcast replay to follow.
Sources
- 8-K Filing — HUNT J B TRANSPORT SERVICES INC (JBHT) — SEC EDGAR
- Exhibit ex_1025956.htm — HUNT J B TRANSPORT SERVICES INC 8-K exhibit — SEC EDGAR
- Intermodal: Freight’s MUST-HAVE in Volatile Markets — Yahoo Finance
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