Old Dominion Stock Tumbles 7%, Wiping Out $2.7 Billion, After Third-Quarter Report

Old Dominion Freight shares fell 6.97% to $173.99 in Wednesday trading, as of 2:30 p.m. ET, erasing $2.7 billion in market value, after the trucker reported third-quarter revenue of $1.59 billion and told analysts to expect a 73.5 operating ratio next quarter.

Margins lag the revenue recovery

The company, a less-than-truckload carrier that moves freight shipments sharing a truck with other customers' loads, posted third-quarter earnings per share of $1.65. Daily tonnage was flat from a year earlier, and daily shipments fell 2%.

The operating ratio, which measures operating costs against revenue and where lower is better, improved to 71.5%, according to the SEC filing. Higher prices per shipment outweighed the drop in shipments.

On the earnings call, the CFO guided to a 73.5 operating ratio for the coming quarter. Analysts pressed on why margins would only follow seasonal patterns even as revenue improves.

Executives pointed to about 35% excess door space as the basis for taking market share from rivals constrained on capacity.

Off its peak despite a 19% gain

The stock was on pace for its biggest one-day drop since March 6, when it fell 7.9%.

Shares were up about 19% this year at Tuesday's close, ahead of the S&P 500's gain of about 13%. Even so, they closed Tuesday 25% below the highest close of the past year, set on June 9.

Old Dominion operated 260 service centers at the end of 2025, and more than 98% of its revenue has historically come from less-than-truckload shipments. Its second-quarter results showed revenue up 10.4% from a year earlier and an operating margin of 29.9%.

Saia, another trucking company, is scheduled to report third-quarter results on Thursday.

Sources

• Old Dominion’s tonnage turns positive; recovery needs demand inflection - FreightWaves — freightwaves.com
• Old Dominion Freight Line (ODFL) Q3 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates — Yahoo Finance
• Old Dominion Freight Line GAAP EPS of $1.65 beats by $0.04, revenue of $1.59B beats by $20M (ODFL:NASDAQ) — seekingalpha.com
• Old Dominion Freight Line (ODFL) vs. SAIA and XPO: Can Pricing Power and a Freight Recovery Drive Further Upside? — Yahoo Finance
• FDXF (FDXF) vs. ODFL and XPO: Can FedEx Freight’s Spin-Off Unlock Value as a Standalone LTL Leader? — Yahoo Finance
• The company's filing (Old Dominion Freight) — SEC filing
• Old Dominion Freight — Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 2026-06-30 (quarterly results) — SEC EDGAR

More on Old Dominion Freight

• Old Dominion Says Rivals Are Missing Pickups For Lack Of Labor, As Big Customers Lock In Two-Year Rates
• Old Dominion Guides Fourth-Quarter Operating Ratio To About 73.5% Even As Revenue Runs Above Seasonal Norms
• Old Dominion Earnings Per Share Jump 28.9% To $1.65 On Pricing, Even As Daily Shipments Fall 2.0%

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