Old Dominion (ODFL) Q2 EPS Falls 14%

Globe and Mail

4 days ago

Key Points
EPS fell 14.2% year-over-year to $1.27 in the second quarter, missing estimates by $0.01 and declining from $1.48 a year ago.
Revenue (GAAP) dropped 6.1% to $1.41 billion, slightly below expectations (GAAP) and down from $1.50 billion in the prior year's second quarter.
Operating ratio deteriorated to 74.6%, up from 71.9% last year, indicating higher relative costs.
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Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL), a leading U.S. less-than-truckload (LTL) freight carrier, published its second quarter 2025 results on July 30, 2025. The company reported GAAP revenue of $1.41 billion and GAAP earnings per share (EPS) of $1.27, both coming in modestly below analyst estimates of $1.416 billion and $1.28, respectively (GAAP). Compared to the prior-year quarter, GAAP revenue decreased by 6.1% and EPS fell by 14.2% year-over-year in the second quarter. The results signal continued softness in freight demand and higher operating costs, leading to a lower operating margin. Overall, the quarter reflected ongoing headwinds in the freight sector and a challenging near-term operating environment for Old Dominion Freight Line.
Metric Q2 2025 Q2 2025 Estimate Q2 2024 Y/Y Change
EPS (GAAP) $1.27 $1.28 $1.48 (14.2%)
Revenue (GAAP) $1,407.7 million $1,416.4 million $1,498.7 million (6.1%)
Operating Income $357.9 million $421.7 million (15.1%)
Operating Ratio 74.6% 71.9% +2.7 pp
Net Income $268.6 million $322.0 million (16.6%)
Source: Analyst estimates for the quarter provided by FactSet.
Business Overview and Key Success Factors
Old Dominion Freight Line is one of the largest LTL carriers in the United States, providing regional, inter-regional, and national freight transportation. Its core business moves palletized shipments that are too large for standard parcel delivery but don't fill a full truck. The company operates a network of 261 service centers across the country, allowing it to serve diverse customers with high on-time performance and reliability in freight delivery.
Recent years have seen the company focus investment on expanding its service center network, deploying new technology to drive efficiencies, and maintaining robust cost controls. Success for Old Dominion depends on service reliability, network scale, cost management, and its ability to adapt to market-demand swings. It invests heavily in infrastructure and IT systems to strengthen its delivery speed and service quality, while closely managing capital spending and overheads to support profitability even during downturns.
Quarter in Detail: What Drove This Quarter's Results
The company's revenue slipped by 6.1% year-over-year in the second quarter, reflecting a notable decline in shipped freight volumes. Daily LTL tons decreased 9.3%, and shipments per day fell 7.3%. Weight per shipment also declined by 2.1%. Lower shipment volumes pressed down net income and operating profit, a pattern seen across many LTL carriers in 2025.
Old Dominion continued to demonstrate pricing discipline in the face of weaker volumes. Its LTL revenue per hundredweight, which measures the average price for moving 100 pounds of freight, rose 3.4% year over year, and the figure excluding fuel surcharges improved by 5.3%. The company managed to achieve these price gains through selective contract renewals and yield management efforts, even as market competition intensified. This approach provided some protection against falling volumes but could not fully offset the drag on overall results.
The company's operating ratio, a critical metric in trucking that expresses operating expenses as a percentage of revenue, worsened from 71.9% in Q2 2024 to 74.6%. This shift signals higher costs relative to sales, driven in part by increases in depreciation expenses and employee benefit costs such as group health and dental. Overhead as a percentage of revenue rose by 1.6 percentage points. Despite Old Dominion's traditional cost discipline, cost inflation and lower demand made it more challenging to preserve margin. Net income (GAAP) slid 16.6% compared to the same period last year.
Service performance remained a highlight. The company maintained a 99% on-time service rate and a cargo claims ratio of just 0.1%, underscoring its operational reliability. Active full-time equivalent employees fell 4.8% year over year. The company continued to invest in capital expenditures, with $187.2 million spent on facilities, equipment, and technology. The capital expenditure plan totals $450 million for FY2025, with $210 million to real estate and service center expansion, $190 million for new tractors and trailers, and $50 million on IT and other assets. This marks a planned reduction from prior years, allowing the company to match spending more closely to current demand trends.
Looking Ahead: Management Outlook and Areas to Watch
For the coming quarters and the remainder of fiscal 2025, management did not issue formal financial guidance, citing ongoing uncertainty in the broader economic and industrial environment. Leadership emphasized its commitment to maintaining pricing discipline, investing in operational efficiency, and retaining ample capability to increase volume if demand recovers. The company continues to hold a strong position to benefit from future rebounds in freight activity, given its spare capacity and industry-scale network.
Investors and industry observers should monitor trends in LTL shipment volumes, revenue per hundredweight, and the operating ratio. The capital spending plan now stands at $450 million for FY2025, a reduction from earlier expectations as certain projects are deferred. This cautious stance will allow Old Dominion to focus on network efficiency and service quality while maintaining flexibility for growth should the freight market turn upward. The company declared and paid $118.5 million in dividends during the first six months of 2025, reflecting ongoing capital returns.
Revenue and net income presented using U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) unless otherwise noted.
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JesterAI is a Foolish AI, based on a variety of Large Language Models (LLMs) and proprietary Motley Fool systems. All articles published by JesterAI are reviewed by our editorial team, and The Motley Fool takes ultimate responsibility for the content of this article. JesterAI cannot own stocks and so it has no positions in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Old Dominion Freight Line. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $195 calls on Old Dominion Freight Line and short January 2026 $200 calls on Old Dominion Freight Line. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.