Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc.

Hello and welcome to Universal Logistics Holdings first quarter 2024 earnings conference call. At this time all participants are in listen-only mode. Should you need assistance please signal a conference specialist by pressing the start key followed by zero. A brief question and answer session will follow the formal presentation. During the course of this call management may make forward-looking statements based on their view of the business as seen today. Statements that are forward-looking relate to Universal's business objectives or expectations and can be identified by the use of the words such as belief, expect, anticipate, and project. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results could differ materially from those expectations. As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. It is now my pleasure to introduce your host, Mr. Tim Phillips, Chief Executive Officer of Mr. Jude Barris, Chief Financial Officer, and Mr. Steven Fitzpatrick, Vice President of Finance and Investor Relations. Thank you. Mr. Phillips, you may now begin.

Thank you, and good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining Universal's 2024 First Quarter Earnings Call. There's a lot to unpack in this quarter, but let me start off by thanking our nearly 10,000 team members who work tirelessly day in and day out to make Universal the best-in-class transportation and logistics provider we are today. We couldn't do it without your hard work and dedication. I also want to thank our customers for continuously recognizing our efforts and the value we bring to their supply chains. The long-term partnerships we have built with some of the most recognizable brands in the manufacturing space are what we truly differentiate Universal business model in the space. Now for the quarter. Our performance in the first quarter varied greatly dependent on the individual business segment. Our contract logistics segment delivered outsized results, while our intermodal and company managed brokerage segments continued to fall behind our performance expectations. Trucking was steady as she goes, delivering mid single digit margins as our specialized heavy haul business buoyed their results. Q1 was certainly a challenging environment for our transactional transportation business, But overall, I'm extremely pleased with our results. The first quarter of 2024, Universal reported $491.9 million of revenue, $1.99 of earnings per share, and an operational margin of 15.3%. This was the best earnings per share and operating margin for any quarter in Universal's history. In the contract logistics segment, Revenues increased 48.4% to $313.5 million. This was largely due to our recent program award that ramped up in Q1 and will be completed by the end of 2024. At the end of Q1 2024, Universal managed 71 value-added programs compared to 65 at the end of Q1 2023. We believe we will continue to see strength in the contract logistics segment for a number of reasons. First, Q2 is typically our strongest quarter for contract logistics. There are fewer shutdowns or interruptions to the OEM's production. Secondly, the auto industry is doing well. The SAR remains over $15 million, and Class A production has remained consistent. As the OEMs are under pressure, some are altering or even reevaluating their EV transition plans while addressing labor cost pressures. The wage inflation we are seeing in the auto sector could lead our customers to seek more outsourcing opportunities, utilizing Universal's lower cost but high service solutions. We are already beginning to see this. We have several new contract logistics programs launching in the back half of 2024 and the beginning of 2025.

Trucking segment revenues decreased 12.6% to $69.7 million.