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Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
GXO Q1 Earnings Call: Healthcare Wins, Tech Investment, and Guidance Reaffirmed
Contract logistics company GXO (NYSE:GXO) announced better-than-expected revenue in Q1 CY2025, with sales up 21.2% year on year to $2.98 billion. On the other hand, next quarter's revenue guidance of $2.97 billion was less impressive, coming in 2.6% below analysts' estimates. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.29 per share was 14.5% above analysts' consensus estimates. Is now the time to buy GXO? Find out in our full research report (it's free). Revenue: $2.98 billion vs analyst estimates of $2.94 billion (21.2% year-on-year growth, 1.4% beat) Adjusted EPS: $0.29 vs analyst estimates of $0.25 (14.5% beat) Adjusted EBITDA: $163 million vs analyst estimates of $154.8 million (5.5% margin, 5.3% beat) Revenue Guidance for Q2 CY2025 is $2.97 billion at the midpoint, below analyst estimates of $3.05 billion Management reiterated its full-year Adjusted EPS guidance of $2.50 at the midpoint EBITDA guidance for the full year is $850 million at the midpoint, above analyst estimates of $843.1 million Operating Margin: -1.9%, in line with the same quarter last year Organic Revenue rose 2.7% year on year (1% in the same quarter last year) Market Capitalization: $4.99 billion GXO's first quarter results showcased notable expansion in healthcare contract logistics and sustained investment in automation and AI-driven warehouse solutions. CEO Malcolm Wilson emphasized the company's landmark contract with the U.K. National Health Service, its largest ever, attributing it to an acquisition-led strategy targeting high-growth verticals. Management also cited positive impacts from new business in aerospace, defense, and industrial sectors, alongside rising customer satisfaction, which Wilson stated improved nearly 10% year-over-year. CFO Baris Oran highlighted that operational improvements, including productivity gains at new and existing facilities, meaningfully contributed to operating margins. While continental European operations showed strong momentum, U.K. volumes, initially soft due to new employment taxes, rebounded as the quarter progressed. Looking ahead, GXO's guidance is underpinned by expectations of steady organic growth and continued productivity improvements from technology initiatives. Management emphasized a strong sales pipeline, the ongoing integration of the Wincanton acquisition, and increased demand for outsourcing and automation as structural industry tailwinds. CEO Malcolm Wilson acknowledged the uncertain macroeconomic environment, noting, 'In a normal environment, as a management team, definitely, we would have been raising our outlook for 2025... but I think it's a prudent approach.' CFO Baris Oran explained their guidance assumes flat volumes year-over-year, with contingency planning for softer U.S. consumer-facing activity. The company is also focused on ramping cost savings from AI and automation projects throughout 2025, while continuing to diversify across verticals and geographies to mitigate risks. Management attributed GXO's strong first-quarter performance to several key strategic drivers, emphasizing significant expansion in the healthcare sector, ongoing adoption of advanced technology and automation, and disciplined execution of productivity initiatives. CEO Malcolm Wilson highlighted the landmark U.K. National Health Service contract as a pivotal win, underscoring the success of their acquisition strategy. CFO Baris Oran noted that these operational improvements, coupled with the faster-than-anticipated ramp-up of new facilities, contributed to beating adjusted EBITDA expectations. The company also stressed increased business diversification across new verticals and geographies, alongside steady progress on the Wincanton integration, as crucial elements underpinning their positive results and future outlook. Healthcare sector expansion: GXO secured its largest-ever contract with the U.K. National Health Service (~$2.5B lifetime value), starting Q3. This Clipper-driven win boosts a healthcare pipeline including Siemens Healthineers, targeting European and U.S. expansion. Wincanton integration progress: Wincanton is performing as expected. Post-CMA approval, integration is set for early summer, aiming for $58 million in cost synergies to improve margins, with the business trading well. Operational productivity gains: Faster ramp-up of new automated sites and productivity initiatives drove Q1 results. These benefits will accelerate through 2025 as impacts from prior customer realignments lessen, improving visibility. Tech and automation investment: Over 20 AI modules (replenishment, routing) are live, yielding initial Q1 cost savings. These savings will ramp up, alongside other automation projects like inventory cycle counting and inbound unloading. Customer base diversification & pipeline: The ex-Wincanton sales pipeline hit $2.5 billion (up 13% YoY). New wins show diversification: 41% new outsourcing, 39% automation, 42% e-commerce, with key customer expansions like Boeing. GXO's forward-looking performance is expected to be driven by several key strategic pillars, prominently featuring sustained expansion within the high-growth healthcare vertical, continued realization of efficiencies from their significant investments in technology and automation, and the progressive unlocking of cost synergies from the Wincanton acquisition. While management expressed confidence in these drivers, they also maintained a cautious stance, acknowledging the prevailing macroeconomic uncertainty and its potential to influence customer demand and operational dynamics. The reaffirmed guidance reflects this balance, banking on contractual protections and business model resilience. Healthcare and new verticals: The ongoing ramp-up of major healthcare contracts, particularly the substantial NHS deal commencing in Q3, is expected to be a significant revenue contributor. Furthermore, GXO is actively pursuing and securing new business in other targeted verticals such as aerospace, defense, and industrial, aiming to further diversify its growth drivers and enhance overall business resilience. Wincanton synergy realization: The integration of Wincanton, anticipated to commence in early summer following CMA clearance, is projected to deliver $58 million in targeted cost synergies. Management expects these synergies to contribute to margin expansion as the integration process gathers momentum throughout the latter half of 2025 and beyond, improving overall group profitability. Automation and AI scaling: Continued expansion and maturation of AI and automation solutions across GXO's global network are anticipated to drive further productivity gains and reduce operational costs. The initial cost savings observed from over 20 live AI implementations in Q1 are expected to scale throughout 2025 as these tools are deployed more broadly and new automation technologies are introduced. In coming quarters, the StockStory team will be closely monitoring (1) the operational ramp and revenue contribution from the NHS healthcare contract, (2) the pace and financial impact of Wincanton integration and synergy realization, and (3) the scaling of AI and automation initiatives across additional sites. Progress in diversifying the sales pipeline and mitigating exposure to sector-specific or geographic risks will also be key indicators. GXO Logistics currently trades at a forward P/E ratio of 16.6×. At this valuation, is it a buy or sell post earnings? See for yourself in our full research report (it's free). Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 U.S. Presidential Election sent major indices to all-time highs, but stocks have retraced as investors debate the health of the economy and the potential impact of tariffs. While this leaves much uncertainty around 2025, a few companies are poised for long-term gains regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate, like our Top 5 Strong Momentum Stocks for this week. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025). Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Exlservice (+354% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today.
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The U.K. Supreme Court dealt a blow to trans rights — but we're here to stay
On Wednesday morning, my social feeds showed me two stark reactions to a historic rolling back of trans rights in the United Kingdom. J.K. Rowling, author of the 'Harry Potter' series and notorious anti-trans advocate, posted a photo of herself smoking a cigar and holding a glass of wine on her yacht. 'I love it when a plan comes together,' the caption reads. The photo struck a sharp contrast to what I saw from my trans friends in the U.K., many of whom posted about being terrified of their own government and wishing to flee the country. That's because the 'plan' Rowling was referencing was a U.K. Supreme Court judgment that ruled trans women should not be considered women, essentially wiping out decades of civil rights advances for British transgender people. The judges heard from representatives of numerous anti-trans special interest groups, but no trans people or trans rights groups provided testimony, in part because individuals and organizations that fund and support trans rights thought they would not be believed and feared negative repercussions. The exclusion of trans voices in the case matches what happened with the Cass Report, a document commissioned by the U.K. National Health Service purporting to investigate youth gender medicine, from last April, in which experts in trans health care were similarly disregarded. There's also a significant financial component, with Rowling reportedly donating £70,000 to For Scotland Women, the organization that brought the original suit. The ruling comes in the same week HBO announced the initial casting for its upcoming 'Harry Potter' series, featuring John Lithgow as Dumbledore. Lithgow's career got a serious boost in the early 1980s after he was nominated for the best supporting actor Oscar for playing the trans woman character Roberta Muldoon in 'The World According to Garp.' Now, he's working on a project that could indirectly financially contribute to the marginalization of trans people in the U.K., should Rowling, who is an executive producer on the project and will earn royalties from the show, choose to contribute more of her earnings to anti-trans projects. The ruling was another setback for trans rights in a year of particularly notable backtracking around the world. In the U.S., the federal government has been largely successful in purging trans people from the military, trans-related ideas and even words ascribed to trans people from government usage. Trans people in America are now unable to get accurate passports, and the Trump administration recently announced it would be cutting federal education funding from the state of Maine because the state refuses to ban two trans girls from playing girls high school sports in the state. There is thankfully still some protection for those who live in more trans-friendly blue states, so the rights you have as a trans person depend largely on where, geographically, you live within the country. For trans folks in the U.K., Wednesday's ruling will no doubt signal that the anti-trans lobby groups that currently have the ear of the Labour government in power can push even further. Though the court ruling didn't expressly extend into specific policies, we will likely see a push to formalize policies like bathroom bans. Health Secretary Wes Streeting has taken the lead on rolling back access to transition care in the National Health Service. He responded to the now widely denounced Cass Report by instituting a ban on puberty blockers for all trans youth in the country and has directed general providers to withhold transition care like hormones for adults in order to push them into the country's gender clinic system, which comes with a sometimes decadelong waiting time. Sitting here as a trans person in the U.S. and watching what's happening both here and across the pond, it's difficult for me to say which country has it worse right now. Both countries have billionaire patron saints of the anti-trans movement, with Elon Musk in the U.S. and Rowling in the U.K., with no real financial counterweight on the trans rights side. But both countries are also full of talented, funny, wonderful trans people who simply want to live their lives without the government fumbling around in our underpants all the time. Here in the U.S. we get millions of dollars in political attack ads and conservative anti-trans activist like Riley Gaines launching a lucrative activist career after finishing tied for fifth with controversial trans swimmer Lia Thomas in a collegiate swim meet. But the U.S. also has folks like Maine Gov. Janet Mills, who rather famously told Trump 'see you in court' to his face when he asked her if her state would comply with his executive order banning trans girls from girls' school sports. In the U.S., we at least have some Democratic leaders willing to stand up for us, like Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker. This ruling may have been a significant setback, but there is still nothing that can stop us from simply existing as trans people. The world has always had trans people, and always will. The J.K. Rowlings of the world come and go, but trans people are eternal, and that feels like a very comforting thought here in the eye of the storm in 2025. This article was originally published on
