Landstar Q2 Earnings & Revenues Top Estimates, Improve Year Over Year

Revenues of $1.43 billion surpassed the consensus mark of $1.32 billion by 8.3% and increased 18.2% year over year. Higher truck rates and modest load growth drove the top line, with truck revenue per load climbing 17% year over year.

LSTR's Truck Business Powers Revenue Growth

Truck transportation revenues increased 19.3% year over year to $1.33 billion and represented 93% of total revenues. The number of truckloads rose 1.9% year over year to 510,250, while revenue per truckload increased to $2,614 from $2,234.

Van-equipment revenues grew 21.4% year over year to $717.51 million, supported by a 4.8% year-over-year increase in loads and a 15.8% rise in revenue per load. Unsided and platform revenues increased 22.8% year over year to $492.17 million as loads rose 2.4% and revenue per load jumped 19.9%.

Consumer durables remained the largest market served, accounting for 28.3% of transportation logistics revenues. Revenues from that market increased 24% year over year, while energy revenues surged 76%. Building products revenues rose 24% year over year, machinery revenues increased 17% and automotive revenues advanced 5%.

Landstar's Other Services Deliver Mixed Results

Rail intermodal revenues increased 26% year over year to $27.76 million. Rail loads rose 9% year over year to 8,520, while revenue per load increased 15.7% to $3,258, providing growth from both volume and pricing.

Ocean and air-cargo revenues declined 2.1% year over year to $49.74 million as a 3.8% year-over-year decrease in loads offset a 1.8% increase in revenue per load. Other truck transportation revenues fell 1.6% year over year to $99.07 million.

Less-than-truckload revenues edged down 0.7% year over year to $25.12 million. A 24.9% reduction in loadings more than offset a 32.1% improvement in revenue per load, reflecting a sizable shift in the mix of shipments handled during the quarter.

LSTR's Profitability Improves Despite Insurance Pressure

Gross profit increased 21.1% year over year to $132.34 million, and gross margin expanded 20 basis points from the year-ago reported quarter to 9.2%. Variable contribution, which excludes purchased transportation and agent commissions, rose 17% year over year to $199.43 million. The related margin contracted 20 basis points from the year-ago reported quarter to 13.9%.

Insurance and claims expense increased 29.3% year over year to $39.36 million, mainly due to unfavorable development of prior-year claims. Selling, general and administrative expenses rose 22.4% year over year to $68.19 million, partly limiting operating leverage despite strong revenue growth.

Landstar's Capacity Trends Support Freight Demand

The company added a net 68 trucks provided by business capacity owners during the quarter, its strongest quarterly increase since the first quarter of 2022. BCO trucks totaled 8,544 at the second-quarter end.

BCO-hauled loads increased 10.1% year over year to 224,600, while revenues generated through BCO capacity rose 22% year over year to $563.07 million. The stronger utilization of this dedicated capacity supported Landstar's truck performance.

Management said that truck volumes and revenue per load outpaced normal seasonal patterns. July truckloads were about 5% above the prior-year level, while truck revenue per load was approximately 26% higher, indicating continued momentum entering the third quarter.

LSTR's Balance Sheet Remains Strong

At the end of second-quarter 2026, Landstar had cash and cash equivalents of $294.35 million compared with $353.25 million recorded at the prior-quarter end. Additionally, long-term debt (excluding current maturities) totaled $42.08 million at the end of the second quarter compared with $43.14 million at the prior-quarter end.

Cash flow from operations totaled $27.8 million in the first half, while capital expenditures were $8.7 million and free cash flow was $19.1 million. First-half free cash flow declined from $58.4 million reported in the second quarter of 2025.

Dividend Hike Update & Share Buybacks

Concurrent with its second-quarter 2026 earnings release, Landstar’s board of directors approved a dividend hike of 10%, thereby raising its quarterly cash dividend to 44 cents per share ($1.76 annualized) from 40 cents ($1.60 annualized). The raised dividend will be paid out on Sept. 9, 2026, to shareholders of record at the close of business on Aug. 18. The move reflects LSTR’s intention to utilize free cash to enhance its shareholders’ returns.

Landstar did not purchase shares in the second quarter of 2026. However, during the first half of 2026, Landstar purchased 150,923 shares of its common stock for $22.6 million. Landstar is currently authorized to purchase up to an additional 1,115,195 shares under its longstanding share purchase program.

Overall, Landstar returned nearly $120 million to shareholders through dividends ($95.3 million) and share repurchases ($24.1 million) during the first half of 2026.

Currently, Landstar carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Q2 Performances of Other Transportation Companies

Delta Air Lines (DAL) reported second-quarter 2026 earnings (excluding 88 cents from non-recurring items) of $1.56 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.51. Earnings declined in double digits (% wise) from a year ago as sharply higher fuel costs pressured profitability.

Revenues rose on a year-over-year basis to $17.67 billion but missed the consensus estimate of $17.76 billion. Broad demand strength lifted adjusted total revenue per available seat mile, or TRASM, 12.4%, while premium and diversified revenue streams continued to expand.

United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (UAL)reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $1.99 per share, down 48.6% year over year but above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.92 by 3.7%.

Operating revenues rose 16% to $17.67 billion and were essentially in line with the $17.68-billion consensus mark. A 12.1% increase in total revenue per available seat mile, or TRASM, and broad-based gains across premium, loyalty and cargo revenues supported the top line despite sharply higher fuel costs.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (JBHT) reported second-quarter 2026 earnings of $1.91 per share, up 45.8% from $1.31 a year ago. The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.71 by 11.7%.

Operating revenues climbed 19.4% year over year to $3.50 billion and surpassed the consensus mark of $3.19 billion by 9.5%. Higher volumes and pricing across several businesses supported growth, led by a 10% increase in Intermodal loads.

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