Earnings Preview: ArcBest (ARCB) Q4 Earnings Expected to Decline

Company Overview - ArcBest (ARCB) is anticipated to report a year-over-year decline in earnings due to lower revenues for the quarter ended December 2024, with earnings expected to be $1.05 per share, reflecting a decrease of 57.5$997.94 million, down 8.4% from the same quarter last year [3] Earnings Estimates and Revisions - The consensus EPS estimate for ArcBest has been revised down by 20.72% over the last 30 days, indicating a reassessment by analysts [4] - The Most Accurate Estimate for ArcBest is higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, resulting in an Earnings ESP of +1.91% [10][11] Earnings Surprise Prediction - A positive Earnings ESP reading suggests a potential earnings beat, particularly when combined with a strong Zacks Rank; however, ArcBest currently holds a Zacks Rank of 5, making it challenging to predict an earnings beat [8][11] - Historically, ArcBest has only beaten consensus EPS estimates once in the last four quarters, with a recent surprise of -10.87% in the last reported quarter [12][13] Industry Context - In the Zacks Transportation - Truck industry, Heartland Express (HTLD) is expected to report a loss of $0.04 per share for the same quarter, indicating a year-over-year change of -166.7% [17] - Heartland Express has an Earnings ESP of 25.00% and a Zacks Rank of 3, suggesting a higher likelihood of beating the consensus EPS estimate [18]