It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Expeditors International (EXPD Quick QuoteEXPD - Free Report) . Shares have added about 6.6% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Expeditors International due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.

Earnings Miss at Expeditors in Q3

Expeditors' third-quarter 2023 earnings of earnings of $1.16 per share missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.25. The bottom line plunged 54.3% year over year due to volume woes. Total revenues of $2,190 million lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2,323.7 million and declined 49.8% year over year.

Airfreight tonnage and ocean container volumes dipped 14% and 15%, respectively. Operating income was down 59% to $216 million. Total operating expenses fell 48.5% to $1.97 billion.

Airfreight Services revenues tumbled 51.5% year over year to $724.3 million in the third quarter. Ocean freight and ocean services revenues reduced 66.7% to $560.3 million. Customs Brokerage and other services revenues shrank 24.3% year over year to $905.4 million.

Per EXPD’s president and chief executive officer Jeffrey S. Musser, “As expected, the deceleration in demand that we have seen since the second half of 2022 continued in the comparable third quarter of 2023. Additionally, rates generally remained soft while capacity exceeded demand in most lanes.”

In the third quarter of 2023, Expeditors repurchased 2.6 million shares at an average price of $116.29 per share. EXPD exited the September quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $1.64 billion compared with $2.03 billion at the end of 2022.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

In the past month, investors have witnessed a downward trend in estimates review.

The consensus estimate has shifted -7.44% due to these changes.

VGM Scores

At this time, Expeditors International has a nice Growth Score of B, though it is lagging a lot on the Momentum Score front with a D. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock was allocated a grade of C on the value side, putting it in the middle 20% for this investment strategy.

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

Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Notably, Expeditors International has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.

Performance of an Industry Player

Expeditors International belongs to the Zacks Transportation - Services industry. Another stock from the same industry, Schneider National (SNDR Quick QuoteSNDR - Free Report) , has gained 8.7% over the past month. More than a month has passed since the company reported results for the quarter ended September 2023.

Schneider National reported revenues of $1.35 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of -19.3%. EPS of $0.20 for the same period compares with $0.70 a year ago.

For the current quarter, Schneider National is expected to post earnings of $0.22 per share, indicating a change of -65.6% from the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed -24.3% over the last 30 days.

Schneider National has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) based on the overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions. Additionally, the stock has a VGM Score of B.