Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULH) Q1 2023 Earnings Conference Call April 28, 2023 10:00 AM ET
Company Participants
Tim Phillips - Chief Executive Officer
Jude Beres - Chief Financial Officer
Conference Call Participants
Operator
Hello, and welcome to Universal Logistics Holdings’ First Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. [Operator Instructions] A brief question-and-answer session will follow the formal presentation.
During the course of this call, management may make forward-looking statements based on their best view of the business as seen today. Statements that are forward-looking relate to Universal’s business objectives or expectations and can be identified by the use of the words such as believe, expect, anticipate and project. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties and actual results could differ materially from those expectations. As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.
It is now my pleasure to introduce your host Mr. Tim Phillips, Chief Executive Officer; Mr. Jude Beres, Chief Financial Officer and Mr. Steven Fitzpatrick, Vice President of Finance and Investor Relations. Thank you. Mr. Phillips, you may begin.
Tim Phillips
Thank you, Kyle. Good morning, and welcome to Universal Logistics Holdings 2023 first quarter earnings call. I'd like to start off by recognizing the incredible efforts of Universal's over 10,000 associates who worked so hard to make our organization best-in-class provider of customized transportation and logistics solutions.
Although, a challenging comparison to 2022, the first quarter of 2023 was Universal's next best first quarter financial performance on record. Anchored by the results of our contract logistics segment, I'm pleased with our overall performance despite the significant headwinds we faced in our transactional transportation services.
The transportation and logistics community saw a first quarter ramp in inventory destocking, excess truck capacity and low demand for consumer goods. While we felt significant price and volume pressure on our transportation services, our teams did an excellent job managing our controllable costs, while delivering excellent customer service, and capitalizing on continuous improvement initiatives across the organization.
Each segment is focused on operational excellence, increasing the productivity of our assets and rationalizing headcount. The start of 2023 confirmed that we have built a solid foundation for sustainable success in a variety of market conditions. The model has proven to be resilient, and we continue to look for additional opportunities to scale. The pipeline has continued to blossom in our contract logistics space.