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C. H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc.: Q1 FY2026 earnings call

What management said about Q1 FY2026, from the documents filed with the SEC on 29 April 2026: press release. Guidance figures: 2 kept. The quarter’s numbers.

Key takeaways

  • Diluted and adjusted EPS both rose: Diluted EPS rose 9.9% to $1.22 and adjusted diluted EPS rose 15.4% to $1.35. Net income was $147.2 million, up 8.8%. Source
  • NAST revenue up 2.8%: NAST revenues rose 2.8% to $2.9 billion. Adjusted gross profit rose 3.0% to $431.1 million and income from operations rose 1.0% to $145.1 million. Source
  • Global Forwarding revenue fell 14.2%: Global Forwarding revenue fell 14.2% to $664.7 million. Adjusted gross profit fell 12.1% to $162.3 million and income from operations fell 26.2% to $31.7 million. Source
  • NAST gross margin flat at 14.6%: NAST adjusted gross profit margin held flat at 14.6% in the quarter, despite a significant increase in truckload spot market costs. Source
  • Operating cash fell on working capital: Cash from operations fell to $68.6 million as net operating working capital rose $73.5 million sequentially, with higher truckload prices cited as a cause. Source
  • Lean AI cited as growth driver: Management attributed secular earnings growth to market share gains, disciplined revenue management, a cost of hire advantage and Lean AI productivity. Source

“The first quarter of 2026 was another example of this, and our adjusted earnings per share increased 15% year-over-year despite a significant increase in truckload spot market costs,”

President and Chief Executive Officer, Dave Bozeman

Guidance

AreaPeriodFigureAgainst last quarter
Effective tax rate SourceFull year 202618% to 20%Kept
Capital expenditures SourceFull year 2026$75 million to $85 millionKept

What changed from last quarter

  • Guidance kept: Full-year 2026 effective tax rate guidance is unchanged at 18% to 20%. Source
  • Guidance kept: 2026 capital expenditure guidance is unchanged at $75 million to $85 million. Source

Results and growth drivers

  • Diluted and adjusted EPS both rose: Diluted EPS rose 9.9% to $1.22 and adjusted diluted EPS rose 15.4% to $1.35. Net income was $147.2 million, up 8.8%. Source
  • Revenue fell 0.8%: Total revenues were $4.0 billion, down 0.8%, on lower ocean and truckload volume and lower ocean pricing, partly offset by higher truckload and LTL pricing. Source
  • Operating income slipped 0.7%: Income from operations was $175.7 million, down 0.7%, as lower adjusted gross profit and higher restructuring charges were partly offset by lower operating expenses. Source
  • Adjusted operating income rose 5.6%: Adjusted income from operations rose 5.6% to $195.9 million. Adjusted operating margin was 26.6%, up 30 basis points, and 29.7% excluding restructuring. Source

Segments and regions

  • NAST revenue up 2.8%: NAST revenues rose 2.8% to $2.9 billion. Adjusted gross profit rose 3.0% to $431.1 million and income from operations rose 1.0% to $145.1 million. Source
  • NAST margin rose ex-restructuring: NAST adjusted operating margin fell 60 basis points to 33.7%. Excluding restructuring, it rose 310 basis points to 37.4%. Source
  • Global Forwarding revenue fell 14.2%: Global Forwarding revenue fell 14.2% to $664.7 million. Adjusted gross profit fell 12.1% to $162.3 million and income from operations fell 26.2% to $31.7 million. Source
  • Ocean profit fell 22.1%: Ocean adjusted gross profit fell 22.1% as gross profit per shipment fell 12.5% and shipments fell 10.5%. Global Forwarding adjusted operating margin declined 380 basis points to 19.5%. Source
  • Robinson Fresh and Managed Solutions moved: Robinson Fresh adjusted gross profit fell 0.4% to $37.5 million. Managed Solutions rose 6.3% to $29.6 million on higher freight under management. Source

“Over the past year, we’ve consistently said that we’re not immune to macroeconomic conditions or an inflection in spot costs, but that we are managing those conditions better than we have in the past and better than our competitors.”

President and Chief Executive Officer, Dave Bozeman

Products and customers

  • LTL profit rose on order pricing: NAST LTL adjusted gross profit rose 10.5%, with gross profit per order up 8.5% and LTL volume up 2.0%. The enterprise service-line table shows LTL up 10.1%. Source
  • Truckload profit fell on volume: Truckload adjusted gross profit fell 1.9% on a 3.5% volume decline, partly offset by a 1.5% rise in gross profit per shipment. Source
  • Customs profit rose on transaction value: Customs adjusted gross profit rose 20.0%, with gross profit per transaction up 22.0% and transaction volume down 2.0%. Source
  • Air tonnage fell 15.0%: Air adjusted gross profit fell 0.5%. Metric tons shipped fell 15.0%, partly offset by a 16.5% rise in gross profit per metric ton. Source

Costs and personnel

  • Personnel expenses rose on restructuring: Personnel expenses rose 1.2% to $352.7 million on higher restructuring charges, partly offset by cost optimization and productivity gains. Source
  • Other SG&A fell on prior lease impairment: Other SG&A fell 10.6% to $132.1 million, mainly because of a prior-year Kansas City lease impairment, with further declines from cost optimization. Source
  • Interest expense and tax rate lower: Interest expense fell $2.8 million to $14.0 million on lower average debt and lower variable rates. The effective tax rate was 11.7%, down from 13.7%. Source

“Our ability to consistently outperform over the last two plus years is a result of focusing on controlling what we can control and the strength of our Lean AI strategy.”

President and Chief Executive Officer, Dave Bozeman

Margins and pricing

  • Adjusted gross profit per transaction mixed: Adjusted gross profit fell 1.9% to $660.5 million, mainly on lower gross profit per transaction and ocean volume, partly offset by higher LTL per transaction. Source
  • Truckload margin held through spot costs: Management said it optimized truckload gross profit per shipment and kept the NAST gross margin, despite higher truckload spot costs. Source
  • NAST gross margin flat at 14.6%: NAST adjusted gross profit margin held flat at 14.6% in the quarter, despite a significant increase in truckload spot market costs. Source

Demand and volumes

  • Market volume index declined 6.2%: The Cass Freight Shipment Index fell 6.2% year over year, while NAST total volume was flat. Management said this outpaced the market indices. Source
  • Tender rejections lifted transactional volume: Management said it captured transactional volume at higher margins as industry tender rejection rates rose. Source
  • Truckload linehaul rate rose 11.0%: The average truckload linehaul rate per mile rose about 11.0% and linehaul cost per mile rose 13.0%, both excluding fuel surcharges. Source

Cash, capital and shareholder returns

  • Operating cash fell on working capital: Cash from operations fell to $68.6 million as net operating working capital rose $73.5 million sequentially, with higher truckload prices cited as a cause. Source
  • Shareholder returns more than doubled: Cash returned to shareholders was $359.8 million: $280.7 million of share repurchases and $79.0 million of dividends. Source
  • Capital spending and share count: Capital expenditures totaled $15.0 million in the quarter. Diluted weighted average shares fell 0.8% year over year. Source

Strategy and Lean AI

  • Lean AI cited as growth driver: Management attributed secular earnings growth to market share gains, disciplined revenue management, a cost of hire advantage and Lean AI productivity. Source
  • Twelfth straight quarter of share gains: Management said NAST gained market share for the 12th consecutive quarter. Source
  • Lean AI defined as combined approach: Management described Lean AI as its Lean operating model combined with custom-built AI and people, aimed at automation and lower cost to serve. Source
  • Evergreen productivity gains continue: Management said evergreen productivity improvements continued across the business during the quarter. Source

People and leadership

  • Headcount down 12.3% on average: Average employee headcount fell 12.3% consolidated, with NAST down 10.0%. Period-end employees were 11,554 against 12,912 a year earlier. Source
  • Workforce cuts cost $18.8 million: Severance and other personnel expenses of $18.8 million tied to workforce reductions were excluded from adjusted results, along with $1.5 million of other charges. Source
  • CEO credits discipline and culture: Bozeman credited employees for navigating market conditions with discipline and ingenuity, and for embracing a culture shift at the company. Source

Coming up, as management said on 29 April 2026

  • Technology build for customers: Management said it will keep building technology using its domain expertise to deliver on the customer promise and drive value for stakeholders. Source
  • Higher automation and lower cost: Management said it will keep engineering its work for higher automation, an industry-leading cost to serve and improved customer outcomes. Source

Figures management reported

FigureReported
Truckload volume Sourcedown 3.5%
NAST truckload and LTL volume Sourceflat
LTL volume Sourceup 2.0%
Truckload linehaul rate per mile (excluding fuel surcharges) Sourceup approximately 11.0%
Truckload linehaul cost per mile (excluding fuel surcharges) Sourceup 13.0%
Truckload adjusted gross profit per mile Sourceup 1.0%

Risks management discussed

  • External: Management said the North American trucking market has tightened on supply, which has raised truckload spot costs. Source
  • Operational: Management said it had to absorb a higher cost of capacity during the quarter while keeping its gross margin. Source

Earlier plans management reported on

  • Met: Management said the quarter adds another check mark to its say-do record, following earlier statements about managing conditions better than competitors. Source

Other quarters

Summarised with AI from the documents the company filed with the SEC. Every point is checked against the filing before it is shown: management’s own words word for word, figures against the line or table row they come from. A point that fails the check is left out. Source opens the filing at that line.