Companies

J.B. Hunt Profit Growth Collapses After a 32% Second-Quarter Jump

The Tip Desk · October 15, 2026 · 3 min read

Third-quarter operating income rose 2% to $247.1 million as Dedicated Contract Services earnings fell 22% and intermodal profit growth slowed.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (JBHT) reported third-quarter 2026 operating income of $247.1 million, up 2% from a year earlier, a sharp deceleration from the 32% year-over-year increase recorded in the second quarter. Consolidated operating income as a percentage of gross revenue fell year over year, reversing the year-over-year increase the company had reported in the second quarter. Diluted earnings were $1.82 a share, compared with $1.76 a year earlier.

Total operating revenue was $3.68 billion. Revenue excluding fuel surcharge rose 13%, after an 11% year-over-year increase in the second quarter. The ex-fuel-surcharge increase was driven by an 8% rise in Intermodal loads, a 27% increase in Integrated Capacity Solutions revenue per load excluding fuel surcharge, and a 29% increase in Truckload revenue per load excluding fuel surcharge, partially offset by a 10% decline in Final Mile Services stops.

Intermodal remained the profit engine. Segment revenue was $1.83 billion, and operating income was $147.5 million, up 18% from a year earlier after a 58% year-over-year increase in the second quarter. Volume rose 8%. Eastern network loads increased 18%; Transcontinental loads increased 1%. Gross revenue per load rose 11%, reflecting higher fuel surcharge, customer rates and mix; revenue per load excluding fuel surcharge increased 2%. The operating-income gain was primarily attributable to improved network balance, efficiency, cost-to-serve discipline and lower container storage expense, partly offset by higher professional driver personnel, equipment-related costs and insurance and group medical claims.

Dedicated Contract Services was the offset. Revenue was $960 million, up 11%, on a 10% improvement in productivity (revenue per truck per week) and a 1% increase in average trucks. Productivity excluding fuel surcharge rose 3%. The fleet ended the quarter with 162 more revenue-producing trucks than a year earlier and 120 more than at the end of the second quarter. Customer retention remained at approximately 96%. Operating income fell 22% to $81.7 million. The decline was driven by higher professional driver personnel expense, increased group medical claims, higher insurance premiums and equipment expenses, and increased new-business onboarding expense.

Integrated Capacity Solutions revenue was $434 million, up 57%, with volume up 22% and revenue per load up 29%. The segment swung to $9.6 million of operating income from an operating loss of $0.8 million a year earlier. Gross profit margin was 14.3%, down from 15.0% a year earlier but up from 12.5% in the second quarter. Contractual volume was about 63% of loads and 58% of revenue.

Final Mile Services revenue was $200 million, down 3%, and operating income was $1.6 million, down 76%. Stops declined 10%. The revenue decline was driven by known business losses as the company improved revenue quality, partly offset by stabilizing demand in many end markets. Truckload revenue was $261 million, up 37%, with revenue excluding fuel surcharge up 34% on a 29% rise in revenue per load excluding fuel surcharge and a 4% rise in load volume. Operating income was $7.0 million, down 6%, primarily due to higher purchased transportation and equipment-related costs. Trailer turns were up 3%.

On a consolidated basis, higher revenue, improved productivity and lower equipment storage and facility rental expenses lifted operating income, partly offset by higher purchased transportation, driver personnel, equipment-related costs and insurance and group medical claims. The effective tax rate was 25.5%, versus 24.0% a year earlier, due to the timing of discrete items. The company expects the 2026 full-year tax rate to be approximately 24.0%.

At September 30, 2026, outstanding debt was approximately $1.12 billion, compared with $1.60 billion a year earlier. Cash and cash equivalents were about $4 million. In the third quarter, the company purchased about 704,000 shares for about $174 million, leaving about $619 million remaining under its repurchase authorization. Shares outstanding approximated 93.2 million.