J.B. Hunt opens first sales office in Canada

by Paul Gatling ([email protected]) 623 views 

J.B. Hunt Transport Services has opened its first office in Canada, with an enterprise sales office in Toronto. The announcement was made Thursday (March 30).

The Lowell-based carrier has provided transportation services in Canada for more than 25 years and currently offers intermodal, cross-border and brokered truckload service to all provinces & territories. The Toronto enterprise sales branch is the 42nd such location for J.B. Hunt.

“Providing supply chain solutions for Canada is essential to many of our customers,” said Eric McGee, senior vice president of transportation at J.B. Hunt, said in a statement. “This new location will help us enhance our ability to support their international transportation needs and build new relationships.”

INADVERTENT GUIDANCE
Also this week, J.B. Hunt management inadvertently disclosed guidance on profit margins for its four business segments for 2017, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission report Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the Lowell-based carrier hosted a group of investors, and in response to a question during a meeting, “management, thinking that margin guidance had previously been disclosed, indicated that margins for its Dedicated Contract Services segment are expected to be approximately 12% to 13% for the full year 2017,” the report shows.

The following should be the 2017 margins for the carrier’s other business segments:

  • Intermodal, 10.5% to 11.5%
  • Integrated Capacity Solutions, 3% to 5%
  • Trucking, 7% to 9%

“Management confirms its long term margin expectations of 11% to 13% for both Intermodal and Dedicated Contract Services, 4% to 6% for Integrated Capacity Solutions, and 8% to 12% for its Truck segment with a focus on sustainable annual revenue growth in all segments,” the report said.

Shares of J.B. Hunt (Nasdaq: JBHT) closed at $91.16, down $1.18 or 1.28% on Wednesday. The stock has traded between $102.38 and $75.71 in the past 52 weeks.