C.H. Robinson Q3 Adjusted EPS Jumps 28.6% to $1.80 as Revenue Climbs 29.5%

C.H. Robinson's third-quarter adjusted earnings jumped 28.6% as the freight broker raised prices in a tightening trucking market and kept growing volume faster than the broader freight market.

The Eden Prairie, Minnesota, logistics company reported adjusted diluted earnings of $1.80 a share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, according to the earnings release it filed with an 8-K on Wednesday. Diluted EPS rose 24.6% to $1.67, and net income climbed 21.8% to $198.5 million.

Total revenue rose 29.5% to $5.4 billion, which the company attributed mainly to higher pricing in truckload, ocean, less-than-truckload and air services, plus higher truckload volume.

Pricing power in trucking

The company's North American Surface Transportation segment, its largest, grew revenue 29.1% to $3.8 billion. Truckload adjusted gross profit per shipment rose 17.0%, and truckload volume increased 3.5%.

C.H. Robinson said its average truckload linehaul rate charged to customers rose about 31.5%, while its linehaul cost per mile rose 33.5%. Combined truckload and LTL volume grew about 3.5%, versus a 0.3% decline in the Cass Freight Shipment Index, marking what the company called the 14th consecutive quarter of market outgrowth.

"By successfully repricing a large portion of our contractual truckload portfolio and by capturing spot volumes at higher margins, the team achieved a 17% year-over-year increase in truckload AGP per load," President and CEO Dave Bozeman said.

Forwarding margins widen

Global Forwarding revenue jumped 46.1% to $1.1 billion on higher ocean and air pricing. Income from operations in the segment rose 63.3% to $80.0 million, and adjusted operating margin expanded 1,060 basis points to 36.2%.

• Income from operations: $271.8 million, up 23.1%
• Adjusted gross profits: $808.4 million, up 14.5%
• Adjusted operating margin: 33.6%, up 230 basis points
• Average employee headcount: down 10.4%

The company credited its "Lean AI" strategy, which pairs its Lean-based operating model with custom-built AI, for productivity gains. Both NAST and Global Forwarding reached their mid-cycle operating margin targets, according to the release.

Cash flow and buybacks

Cash from operations fell to $124.1 million from $275.4 million a year earlier, which the company tied to working capital needs driven by higher transportation rates. Cash returned to shareholders rose 52.5% to $289.1 million, including $214.3 million of stock repurchases and $74.8 million of dividends.

C.H. Robinson expects a full-year effective tax rate of 18% to 20% and 2026 capital expenditures of $65 million to $75 million.

RXO deal ahead

Bozeman said the same operating model and AI technology will be used to integrate RXO, which C.H. Robinson has proposed to acquire. "We believe the addition of RXO will only magnify our value proposition," he said. The 8-K also included a fifth amendment, dated Oct. 22, to the company's revolving credit agreement.

Sources

1. C.H. Robinson Form 8-K with third-quarter 2026 earnings release (Exhibit 99.1) and fifth amendment to its revolving credit agreement (Exhibit 10.1), filed Oct. 28, 2026 (accession 0001043277-26-000039)

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