J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for attending today's JB Hunt 3Q 2022 earnings conference call. My name is Tia and I will be your moderator for today's call. All lines will be muted during the presentation portion of the call with an opportunity for questions and answers at the end. If you would like to ask a question, please press star one on your telephone keypad. I would now like to pass the conference over to your host, Brad Delco, Senior Vice President of Finance. You may proceed.

Good afternoon. Before I introduce the speakers, I would like to take some time to provide some disclosures regarding forward-looking statements. This call may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as expects, anticipates, intends, estimates or similar expressions are intended to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on J.B. Hunt's current plans and expectations and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause future activities and results to be materially different from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. For information regarding risk factors, please refer to J.B. Hunt's annual report on Form 10-K and other reports and filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Now, I would like to introduce the speakers on today's call. This afternoon, I am joined by our CEO, John Roberts, our President, Shelly Simpson, our CFO, John Kulow, Nick Hobbs, COO and President of Contract Services, Darren Field, President of Intermodal, and Brad Hicks, EVP of People and President of Highway Services. At this time, I would like to turn the call to our CEO, Mr. John Roberts, for some opening comments.

Thank you, Brad, and good afternoon. As we reflect on the performance of the overall business in the third quarter, we echo many of the same themes discussed on our last call with an intense focus on changes in the freight markets we serve. The results in many areas of our business achieved appropriate targets in light of the cyclical shift in market balance I referenced last quarter. While some improvement has been seen in rail service and company hiring challenges, in particular with our driver force, we continue to face difficulties in equipment availability for growth and replacement along with the uncertainty of the direction of macro conditions. Clearly, there are also areas of our business with opportunity for correction. That said, let me be clear, the businesses we've built, the changes we've implemented, and the team's collective experience have and will continue to reveal themselves as value-enhancing catalysts for our customers, our company, and our shareholders. Let me address some of the points around the market dynamics reference. Further evidence has presented itself over the course of the quarter that requires an increased level of caution and awareness on broader demand trends and economic activity. Data, experience, and frequent dialogue with our customers will continue to guide us in this area. The complementary nature and diversification of our businesses will continue to serve us well in this changing market. As mentioned earlier, rail service has shown real signs of improvement in both velocity and reliability during the quarter, with positive momentum building, the most notable increase coming from our friends at the BNSF. We're encouraged by the trends, and Darren will expand on this area in his remarks. I remain in active and regular dialogue with the senior leaders of our primary rail channels on opportunities and investments required to fully restore service levels needed to capture the opportunities presented with Intermodal. We are optimistic about the path forward with Intermodal and with all aspects of our collective services. Members of our leadership team are here and will cover areas of our business more specifically for you, but at this point, I would like to turn the call over for the first time to our new president, Ms. Shelly Simpson. Shelly?