FedEx (FDX) -) shares edged higher Wednesday ahead of the package-delivery giant's fiscal-first-quarter earnings report, slated for after the closing bell.
FedEx, which late last month unveiled plans to increase shipping rates and customs-clearance fees as part of a drive to boost profit, is expected to post adjusted earnings for the three months ended in August some 8.4% higher than a year earlier at $3.73 a share.
Group revenue, however, is set to slip 6.1% to $21.81 billion, reflecting both the loss of market share to its larger rival, United Parcel Service (UPS) -), and a modest slowdown in international traffic.
Earlier this summer, FedEx said it saw fiscal 2024 revenue growth flat with fiscal 2023 levels, or growing at a low single-digit-percent pace, with earnings in the region of $15 to $17 per share.
That forecast, however came prior to its new pricing structure, which kicks in on Jan. 1 and adds around 6% to domestic U.S. shipping costs.
FedEx Freight rates, which focus on heavier items, are set to rise between 5.9% and 6.9% owing to what the company called "incremental costs associated with the current operating environment."
The group said its ongoing efficiency drive will take out another $1.8 billion in permanent costs over the coming fiscal year and around $4 billion in total by 2025.
FedEx also plans to buy back around $2 billion of shares.
FedEx shares were marked 1.27% higher in early Wednesday trading to change hands at $253.78 each, pushing the stock's year-to-date gain firmly past 44% and valuing the Memphis group at just under $65 billion.
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