TIA reports steady gains in Q2 brokered freight shipments and margins

Growth in brokered freight transportation shipments and total invoice dollars were key themes in the Second Quarter 2015: TIA Benchmarking Report, which was recently issued by the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA).

This is the 26th edition of this report, which is based on monthly data from TIA member companies who submit real operating data and respond to questions on business conditions impacting the 3PL sector. Types of questions that the member companies’ answers include: number of shipments by mode, total billing, and gross margins. Other data collected are customer-based forecasts to offer up expectations of near-term business volume.

Total second quarter invoice revenue for all TIA member study participants—at roughly $2.97 billion—was up 9.1 percent annually, and total shipments—at 1,602,775—saw a 9.9 percent annual bump. The average invoice per shipment of $1,850 fell 0.7 percent, with profit margin percentage up 80 basis points to 16.0 percent.

Key second quarter metrics by mode included:
-Intermodal: shipments—at 268,839—were up 2.2 percent annually, with invoice amount per load down 3.6 percent at $2,852, and profit margin percentage up 130 basis points at 10.2 percent;
-Truckload: shipments up 12.6 percent annually at 1,176,251, with invoice amount per load down 5.9 percent at $1,774, profit margin per load up 7.9 percent at $291, and profit margin percentage up 210 basis points at 16.4 percent; and
-Less-than-truckload: shipments down 5.5 percent annually at 130,516, invoice amount per load down 2.6 percent at $400, profit margin per load down 0.3 percent at $75, and profit margin percentage up 50 basis points at 18.7 percent

In an interview with LM, Mark Christos, a member of the TIA Board of Directors, Chair of the TIA 3PL Market Report and vice president at Matson Logistics, said that there has been solid momentum in the report’s data over the last several quarters, going back to around the third quarter of 2014, which carried over into the first and second quarters of 2015. And he explained it represents a type of volume progression despite changes in revenue and yield and profit margins.

“We believe this data highlights how shippers and customers continue to rely on 3PL services as a key component of their mix, with the industry serving as a source, solution, and strategy for many shippers of all sizes,” he said. “That is what we think it really says, and it is certainly encouraging, but at the end of the day, the driver shortage and capacity are still tough and it feels and seems like shippers are turning to 3PLs to help fill those gaps.”

The second quarter data’s over all performance is a little stronger than what was originally expected, specifically on the truckload side, according to Christos, with volumes growing for four consecutive quarters.