ArcBest® Announces Record Third Quarter 2021 Results

FORT SMITH, Ark., Nov. 2, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ArcBest^® (Nasdaq: ARCB), a leader in supply chain logistics, today reported third quarter 2021 revenue of $1.0 billion compared to third quarter 2020 revenue of $795.0 million. Each of ArcBest's operating segments achieved double-digit percentage revenue growth over the prior year. ArcBest's third quarter 2021 operating income was $87.6 million and net income was $63.7 million, or $2.38 per diluted share, compared to third quarter 2020 operating income of $39.8 million and net income of $29.4 million, or $1.11 per diluted share.

Excluding certain items in both periods as identified in the attached reconciliation tables, non-GAAP operating income was $96.1 million in third quarter 2021 compared to $45.8 million in the prior year period. On a non-GAAP basis, net income was $69.2 million, or $2.59 per diluted share, in third quarter 2021 compared to $32.4 million, or $1.22 per diluted share, in third quarter 2020.

"ArcBest continues to capitalize on the power of our integrated solutions to respond to today's rapidly evolving market environment," said Judy R. McReynolds, ArcBest chairman, president and CEO. "Our strategic vision, which is centered on accelerating growth through targeted investments in innovation, technology, logistics solutions and our people, continues to pay off. Furthering these efforts, yesterday's closing of the MoLo Solutions acquisition is expected to build and amplify our powerful portfolio of shipping and logistics services to help our customers drive the economy forward and unlock incremental value for our shareholders."

McReynolds added, "We wouldn't be where we are today – announcing record quarterly results – without ArcBest's talented and committed people, who are at the heart of our success. Our proven ability to operate safely and efficiently while advancing our strategic vision and generating strong financial results is due to our team's consistency and the trusted relationships they have built with our customers. Looking ahead, we are focused on continuing to successfully execute our growth strategy and creating sustainable value for our stakeholders, including our shareholders."

Third Quarter Results of Operations Comparisons

Asset-Based

Third Quarter 2021 Versus Third Quarter 2020

• Revenue of $681.2 million compared to $561.9 million, a per-day increase of 21.2 percent.
• Total tonnage per day increase of 2.4 percent, including an increase of 2.5 percent in LTL-rated weight per shipment.
• Total shipments per day increase of 0.5 percent.
• Total billed revenue per hundredweight increased 17.1 percent and was positively impacted by higher fuel surcharges. Revenue per hundredweight on LTL-rated business, excluding fuel surcharge, improved by a percentage in the double digits.
• Operating income of $83.6 million and an operating ratio of 87.7 percent compared to the prior-year quarter operating income of $36.6 million and an operating ratio of 93.5 percent. On a non-GAAP basis, operating income of $90.5 million and an operating ratio of 86.7 percent compared to the prior-year quarter operating income of $42.8 million and an operating ratio of 92.4 percent.

Strong shipper demand and a solid pricing environment coupled with ArcBest's deep understanding of customer needs resulted in the third record-setting quarter in a row this year for ArcBest's Asset-Based business. Year-over-year tonnage and shipment growth was the result of an emphasis on allocating network resources to serving core LTL customers. Shippers have continued to benefit from ArcBest's assets and facilities throughout its Asset-Based network being used to help solve supply chain challenges. Third quarter 2021 operating income more than doubled compared to the prior-year period and reflected a healthy sequential increase compared to the recent second quarter.

Asset-Light^‡

Third Quarter 2021 Versus Third Quarter 2020

• Revenue of $371.7 million compared to $267.8 million, a per-day increase of 38.8 percent.
• Operating income of $11.5 million compared to the prior-year quarter operating income of $5.8 million.
• Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization ("Adjusted EBITDA") of $14.2 million compared to the prior-year quarter Adjusted EBITDA of $8.6 million, as detailed in the attached non-GAAP reconciliation tables.

Positive momentum in the ArcBest segment continued in the third quarter with record-setting quarterly revenue and operating income. The ability to positively respond to strong customer demand with innovative solutions contributed to solid revenue growth in the ArcBest segment. Increased demand for expedited and truckload logistics services resulted in higher shipment levels and higher average revenue per shipment. Customers' needs for managed transportation solutions also contributed to third quarter revenue growth and improved operating results. The increase in operating income reflects the benefits of higher revenue, partially offset by increased personnel costs in response to shipment growth and continued investments in technology.

Increased business volume combined with higher revenue per event contributed to record quarterly revenue for the FleetNet segment and an increase in operating income over the prior year's third quarter.

NOTE

 ‡ - The ArcBest and FleetNet reportable segments, combined, represent Asset-Light operations.

Conference Call

ArcBest will host a conference call with company executives to discuss the 2021 third quarter results. The call will be today, Tuesday, November 2, at 9:30 a.m. EDT (8:30 a.m. CDT). Interested parties are invited to listen by calling (800) 669-4993 or by joining the webcast which can be found on ArcBest's website at arcb.com. Slides to accompany this call are included in Exhibit 99.3 of the Form 8-K filed on November 2, 2021, will be posted and available to download on the company's website prior to the scheduled conference time, and will be included in the webcast. Following the call, a recorded playback will be available through the end of the day on December 15, 2021. To listen to the playback, dial (800) 633–8284 or (402) 977–9140 (for international callers). The conference call ID for the playback is 21998422. The conference call and playback can also be accessed, through December 15, 2021, on ArcBest's website at arcb.com.

About ArcBest

ArcBest^® (Nasdaq: ARCB) is a multibillion-dollar integrated logistics company that helps keep the global supply chain moving. Founded in 1923 and now with over 14,000 employees across more than 250 campuses and service centers, the company is a logistics powerhouse, fueled by the simple notion of finding a way to get the job done. Through innovative thinking, agility and trust, ArcBest leverages their full suite of shipping and logistics solutions to meet customers' critical needs, each and every day. For more information, visit arcb.com.

The following is a "safe harbor" statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:  Certain statements and information in this press release concerning results for the three months ended September 30, 2021 may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Terms such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "foresee," "int end," "may," "plan," "predict," "project," "scheduled," "should," "would," and similar expressions and the negatives of such terms are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management's beliefs, assumptions, and expectations based on currently available information, are not guarantees of future performance, and involve certain risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control). Although we believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable as and when made, we cannot provide assurance that our expectations will prove to be correct. Actual outcomes and results could materially differ from what is expressed, implied, or forecasted in these statements due to a number of factors, including, but not limited to: widespread outbreak of an illness or disease, including the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects, or any other public health crisis, as well as regulatory measures implemented in response to such events; external events which may adversely affect us or the third parties who provide services for us, for which our business continuity plans may not adequately prepare us; a failure of our information systems, including disruptions or failures of services essential to our operations or upon which our information technology platforms rely, data breach, and/or cybersecurity incidents; interruption or failure of third-party software or information technology systems or licenses; untimely or ineffective development and implementation of, or failure to realize potential benefits associated with, new or enhanced technology or processes, including the pilot test program at ABF Freight; the loss or reduction of business from large customers; the ability to manage our cost structure, and the timing and performance of growth initiatives; the cost, integration, and performance of any recent or future acquisitions, including the MoLo acquisition, and the inability to realize the anticipated benefits of the acquisition within the expected time period or at all; the timing or amount of the earnout payments for the MoLo acquisition, if any; maintaining our corporate reputation and intellectual property rights; competitive initiatives and pricing pressures; increased prices for and decreased availability of new revenue equipment, decreases in value of used revenue equipment, and higher costs of equipment-related operating expenses such as maintenance, fuel, and related taxes; availability of fuel, the effect of volatility in fuel prices and the associated changes in fuel surcharges on securing increases in base freight rates, and the inability to collect fuel surcharges; relationships with employees, including unions, and our ability to attract, retain, and develop employees; unfavorable terms of, or the inability to reach agreement on, future collective bargaining agreements or a workforce stoppage by our employees covered under ABF Freight's collective bargaining agreement; union employee wages and benefits, including changes in required contributions to multiemployer plans; availability and cost of reliable third-party services; our ability to secure independent owner operators and/or operational or regulatory issues related to our use of their services; litigation or claims asserted against us; governmental regulations; environmental laws and regulations, including emissions-control regulations; default on covenants of financing arrangements and the availability and terms of future financing arrangements; self-insurance claims and insurance premium costs; potential impairment of goodwill and intangible assets; general economic conditions and related shifts in market demand that impact the performance and needs of industries we serve and/or limit our customers' access to adequate financial resources; seasonal fluctuations and adverse weather conditions; and other financial, operational, and legal risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in ArcBest Corporation's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC").

For additional information regarding known material factors that could cause our actual results to differ from our projected results, please see our filings with the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and Current Reports on Form 8-K.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements after the date they are made, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Financial Data and Operating Statistics

The following tables show financial data and operating statistics on ArcBest^® and its reportable segments.

ARCBEST CORPORATION
RECONCILIATIONS OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

We report our financial results in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"). However, management believes that certain non-GAAP performance measures and ratios utilized for internal analysis provide analysts, investors, and others the same information that we use internally for purposes of assessing our core operating performance and provides meaningful comparisons between current and prior period results, as well as important information regarding performance trends. The use of certain non-GAAP measures improves comparability in analyzing our performance because it removes the impact of items from operating results that, in management's opinion, do not reflect our core operating performance. Other companies may calculate non-GAAP measures differently; therefore, our calculation may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies. Certain information discussed in the scheduled conference call could be considered non-GAAP measures. Non-GAAP financial measures should be viewed in addition to, and not as an alternative for, our reported results. These financial measures should not be construed as better measurements than operating income, operating cash flow, net income or earnings per share, as determined under GAAP.