A month has gone by since the last earnings report for C.H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW). Shares have lost about 5% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is C.H. Robinson due for a breakout? Well, first let's take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the recent catalysts for C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late.
C.H. Robinson Beats on Q4 Earnings
C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. reported mixed fourth-quarter 2025 results, wherein earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate while revenues missed the same.
Quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.23 outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.12 and improved 1.65% year over year. Total revenues of $3.91 billion missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.95 billion and fell 6.5% year over year, owing to the divestiture of CHRW’s Europe Surface Transportation business, lower pricing and volume in its ocean services, and lower pricing in truckload services. These were, however, partially offset by higher volume in the truckload services.
Adjusted gross profits decreased 4% year over year to $657.0 million, owing to lower adjusted gross profit per transaction in the company’s ocean services and the divestiture of its Europe Surface Transportation business. Adjusted operating margin of 27.6% increased 80 basis points.
Operating expenses decreased 5% year over year to $475.7 million. Personnel expenses fell 4.9% year over year to $337.0 million, owing to cost optimization efforts and productivity improvements and the divestiture of the Europe Surface Transportation business. This was partially offset by higher restructuring charges related to workforce reductions.
CHRW’s Q4 Segmental Results
North American Surface Transportation’s total revenues were $2.81 billion (up 0.3% year over year) in the fourth quarter, owing to higher volumes in the truckload services, partially offset by a shorter average length of haul in truckload services. Adjusted gross profits of the segment increased 1.9% year over year to $411.61 million.
Total revenues from Global Forwarding fell 17.3% year over year to $730.98 million, owing to lower pricing and volume in the company’s ocean services. Adjusted gross profits fell 12.7% year over year to $177.95 million.
Revenues from other sources (Robinson Fresh, Managed Services and Other Surface Transportation) decreased 25.4% year over year to $371.27 million.
Below, we present the division of adjusted profits among the service lines (on an enterprise basis).
Transportation: The unit (comprising Truckload, LTL, Ocean, Air, Customs and Other logistics services) delivered an adjusted gross profit of $623.22million in the quarter under review, down 4.5% from the prior-year figure.
Adjusted gross profits of LTL, Customs and Other logistics services grew 6.3%, 30% and 4.1%, year over year, respectively. Truckload, Ocean and Air’s adjusted gross profits declined 5.1%, 22% and 17%, year over year, respectively.
Balance-Sheet Data
CHRW exited the fourth quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $160.87 million compared with $136.83 million at the end of the prior quarter. Long-term debt was $1.09 billion compared with $1.18 billion at the end of the prior quarter.
CHRW generated $305.4 million of cash from operations in the fourth quarter of 2025, up from $267.9 million generated in the year-ago quarter. The $37.5 million increase in cash flow from operations was owing to a $28.2 million increase in cash generated by changes in net operating working capital.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, CHRW rewarded its shareholders with $207.7 million, which includes $133.3 million in the form of share repurchases and $74.3 million through cash dividends.
Capital expenditures were $15.7 million in the reported quarter.
For 2026, capital expenditures for 2026 are anticipated to be between $75 million and $85 million.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
In the past month, investors have witnessed a flat trend in estimates revision.
VGM Scores
At this time, C.H. Robinson has a strong Growth Score of A, though it is lagging a bit on the Momentum Score front with a B. However, the stock was allocated a score of D on the value side, putting it in the bottom 40% for value investors.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of B. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
Outlook
C.H. Robinson has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.
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C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. (CHRW): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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