There are quarterly financial reports which read like BS in a blender, then occasionally one crosses my screen which makes me realize that all is not well on the Main Street front.
Late Tuesday afternoon the big boy of motor carriers, the legendary J.B. Hunt (Symbol: JBHT) reported their earnings today and the only good part about it was the final period at the end.
Together, let us dissect the information and the consequential data one section at a time.
So far, so bad.
The arrows which highlighted particular segments are only important because it reflects the general economic situation nationally. J.B. Hunt operates across the country, not regionally, so for these types of declines reflected in their financials, this is a disaster and a hint as to how bad it is for the rest of the industry and worse, the railroads.
Economic activity is not only declining, it is cratering no matter how much the Bubblevisions promote “the consumer.”
If one has any experience in transportation and knows the industry, the following page is a true nightmare.
There is nothing good in any of the data displayed above. If anything, it’s a hint that even if the biggest motor carrier sees these type of revenue and utilization declines impacting profitability, then the smaller carriers are getting slaughtered with operating ratios north of 98 or 100.
This is why news stories like this begin to hit the wire after financial reports like the one above:
Logistics giant JB Hunt announces mass layoffs in California and falls sharply after earnings report
— MacroEdge (@MacroEdgeRes) April 16, 2024
Take my word for it as someone who engaged in idling 20% of a large fleet in my past, this is just the beginning. Stagflation guarantees that millions of jobs will be lost as credit conditions deteriorate while everyone is terrified of expanding their business or obtaining more inventory heading into a potential late cycle recession.
Or worse.
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