FedEx seeks to restructure ground delivery in 2024: Analyst

FedEx (FDX) stock is trading lower following a second-quarter earnings miss reported by the freight operator on Tuesday. Despite this, investors remain optimistic, including TD Cowen Senior Research Analyst Helane Becker who maintains an “Outperform” rating on the stock.

"For them — and this is the reason for our optimism — it's really about a multi-year program to get costs down, to shift away from the old narrative of 'operate independently, but compete collectively,'" Becker tells Yahoo Finance, highlight FedEx's cost-saving strategy and restructuring its delivery fleets

While remaining optimistic, Becker does note to Yahoo Finance that the first half of 2024 will be “really tough."

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Video Transcript

- We've been talking a lot about headwinds. I'm going to bring in someone a little bit more optimistic. Our next guest maintains her outperform rating on the stock. Joining us now, is Helane Becker, Cowen Senior Research Analyst.

Helane, I want to just open broad here and just get your overall thoughts on the print from FedEx, maybe why you think the stock is trading lower right now and any positive sort of threads you're still seeing within that print?

HELANE BECKER: Yeah, thanks for the question. So our view is kind of interesting. You mentioned we have an outperform rating on the stock. As I was listening to the conference call. And they're, in general, optimism about the company itself.

And I was watching the stock trade down in after markets trading, and knew it would open down this morning. I was thinking to myself, am I listening to the right conference call? Because they were talking about how aggressively they're working to cut costs.

And for them, and this is the reason for our optimism, for them, it's really about a multi-year program to get costs down, to shift away from the old narrative of operate independently, but compete collectively. And rather, focus on bringing operations together. Get rid of facilities that are underutilized, that they don't need.

Restructure the entire fleet operation in the way they operate the day sort and the night sort, and use less aircraft to get the job done as shippers down-- down-- what is the right word? Downgrade from high-priced alternatives like air to lower priced alternatives like ground. And instead of having an express truck or van in your neighborhood, and then an hour or so later have a ground van in your neighborhood, kind of combine them and lower costs, that way.

So our view is multi-year, which I think is important because to your point, which are very, very correct, in our view, is that we're going to see a really tough first half, calendar half of '24. And that, obviously, coincides with the second half of their fiscal year.