Wabash National

Double whammy for Wabash: 2 key agencies cut debt rating on trailer builder

Trailer manufacturer Wabash National, which has seen its stock price drop by more than 60% in the past year, saw its debt rating downgraded by both S&P Global Ratings and Moody’s this month.

The latest move came earlier this week when S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI) cut its rating on Wabash (NYSE: WNC) to B+ from BB-. The move was foreshadowed in November when S&P Global Ratings lowered Wabash’s outlook to negative. Most downgrades come after a company is first reduced to a negative outlook, just as an...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/double-whammy-for-wabash-2-key-agencies-cut-debt-rating-on-trailer-builder

New decline on weak earnings delivers fresh pain to Wabash stock

Wabash has reported first-quarter earnings that missed projections for the already-battered trailer and equipment manufacturer and sent the company’s stock plunging again.

At approximately 10:30 am EDT, Wabash (NYSE: WNC) stock was at $7.39, a decline of $2.58 or 25.85% on the day. Its intraday low was $7.07. Its 52-week high was July 16, when it hit $24.03.

Among some of the key data points in the earnings report:

  • Wabash shipped 6,290 trailers in the first quarter, compared to 8,500 in the first...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/new-decline-on-weak-earnings-delivers-fresh-pain-to-wabash-stock

Punitive damages in huge Wabash judgment slashed but still over $100M

A court in Missouri rejected a wide variety of requests from trailer builder Wabash National arising from the lawsuit that led to one of the biggest nuclear verdicts ever in trucking and equipment, but the company did win a huge reduction in punitive damages.

The $450 million in punitive damages was slashed to $108 million by Judge Christoper McGraugh of the 22nd Judicial Circuit Court of Missouri in a decision handed down last week. 

But on virtually every other request made by Wabash regarding...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/punitive-damages-in-huge-wabash-judgment-slashed-but-still-over-100m

With trailer orders down, Wabash National gets negative outlook at S&P

Trailer manufacturer Wabash National, which has seen a sharp downturn in its financial measurements, has hung on to its credit rating from S&P Global, but its outlook has been lowered to negative by the ratings agency.

S&P said it was affirming Wabash’s BB- issuer credit rating. It also has a B+ issue-level rating on the company’s senior unsecured notes, as well as a recovery rating of 5. Those were both affirmed by S&P.

A negative outlook at S&P Global means conditions are in place that may lead...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/with-trailer-orders-down-wabash-national-gets-negative-outlook-at-sp

Wabash National hit with $462M verdict in trailer equipment case

Wabash National is evaluating its options in response to a $462 million verdict against the truck trailer manufacturer by a jury in Missouri state court. The case involves a fatal crash of a car into the back of a truck in 2019 in which two people in the car were killed.

The St. Louis jury reached their verdict – which includes $450 million in punitive damages and $6 million each to the families of the two victims in compensatory damages – after three hours of deliberations following a two-week...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/wabash-national-hit-with-462m-verdict-in-trailer-equipment-case

Loaded and Rolling: J.B. Hunt and Wabash make a deal; Susquehanna trucking outlook

J.B. Hunt and Wabash cut multiyear trailer deal
(Photo: Jim Allen/FreightWaves)

Wabash and J.B. Hunt Transport have signed a multiyear deal that will supply J.B. Hunt with 15,000 trailers. The size and scope of the pact are significant, as the past two years saw pandemic-related supply chain disruptions throttle up new trailer orders, causing the average age of existing trailers to rise. Older trailers mean more maintenance costs. 

“The deal — the exact length was undisclosed — is significant,”...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/loaded-and-rolling-jb-hunt-and-wabash-make-a-deal-susquehanna-trucking-outlook

The Log Book: Hardy Brothers Trucking delivers U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree

The Log Book is a weekly rundown of human-interest stories related to the transportation industry. This week: husband and wife team drivers deliver the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree, Wabash continues to support the local Feeding America food bank and Love’s distributes holiday meals to military families.

Hardy Brothers Trucking delivers U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree

Truck manufacturer Kenworth recently announced its T680 Next Gen truck was utilized by husband and wife team drivers, Deb and Ed...

Loaded and Rolling: Trailer as a service; large carrier Q2 earnings boon

Loaded and Rolling Cover ImageTrailer-as-a-service partnership 
(Source: FreightVana)

Trailer pool services are gaining adoption. Wabash, a major manufacturer of equipment, recently announced a partnership with Phoenix-based freight brokerage FreightVana to supply the company with its trailer-as-a-service (TaaS) platform. The platform will provide FreightVana customers with trailer pool services as part of the power-only offering known as FreightVana X. 

This comes as more shippers seek trailer pools to provide greater...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/loaded-and-rolling-trailer-as-a-service-large-carrier-q2-earnings-boon

Trailer orders ramp up in September, pushing existing bookings into 2022

Trailer manufacturers began to satiate pent-up fleet demand in September, but new bookings pushed the length of the backlog for delivery into 2022 amid uncertainties surrounding rolling supply shortages.

Preliminary reports from ACT Research show trailer manufacturers posted 28,500 net orders in September, a 130% gain from August but 45% behind September 2020, the third-highest orders in history.

“We’ve been awaiting the opening of the 2022 orderboard, and that finally occurred during September,”...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/trailer-orders-ramp-up-in-september-pushing-existing-bookings-into-2022

Cold Chain Summit: Wabash National’s composite tech chilling the trailer business

This fireside chat recap is from FreightWaves’ Cold Chain Summit on Wednesday.

FIRESIDE CHAT TOPIC: How composite technology is changing trailer manufacturing

DETAILS: Wabash National is best known as a manufacturer of dry vans. But it is putting a focus on first- to final-mile products by use of molded structural composite that it is applying across its equipment offerings.

SPEAKER: Brent Yeagy, president and CEO, Wabash National Corp.

BIO: Yeagy has been president of Wabash National for the past...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/cold-chain-summit-wabash-nationals-composite-technology-chilling-the-trailer-business

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