By Rob Curran and Denny Jacob
United Parcel Service's financial results fell from a year earlier as the iconic brown delivery fleet dropped fewer packages to Americans' doorsteps and warned that economic visibility was still too poor to provide guidance.
The package giant said while the U.S. economy has demonstrated continued resilience, the U.S. small package market was being weighed down by consumer sentiment, which is near historic lows. This prompted the company to continue withholding any revenue or earnings guidance for the year.
"For our sector, this remains a very unsettling time," Chief Executive Carol Tomé said on an earnings call. "Changes in trade policy have not been cemented and the impact on customer demand and the overall economy is unknown.
Outside the U.S., the company's trade route to China--its most profitable--saw average daily volume decline nearly 35% in the quarter amid an environment of higher tariffs and the elimination of the de minimis exemption.
Other points of pressure include higher-than-anticipated delivery expenses for UPS' Ground Saver offering and volume declines from the company's decision to reduce its work for Amazon.com.
Shares declined 9.7% to $91.69, on pace for its lowest close since May 15, 2020. The stock is among the worst performers in the S&P 500 Tuesday.
The Atlanta company recorded second-quarter earnings of $1.28 billion, or $1.51 a share, down from $1.41 billion, or $1.65 a share, a year earlier.
Stripping out certain one-time items, earnings came in at $1.55 a share. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected $1.56 a share in adjusted earnings.
Revenue fell 2.7% to $21.22 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected $20.85 billion.
Domestic revenue fell 0.8% to $14.08 billion, reflecting lower volumes. Average daily domestic package volume slid 7.3% to 16.6 million.
UPS earlier this month offered buyouts to delivery drivers for the first time in its 117-year history amid stagnant parcel volumes, rising labor costs and a long slump in its share price.
Write to Rob Curran at rob.curran@wsj.com and Denny Jacob at denny.jacob@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 29, 2025 12:52 ET (16:52 GMT)
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