Wabash National Corporation (WNC) specializes in the engineering, manufacturing, and supply of diverse solutions for the transportation, logistics, and distribution industries, primarily ...
Wabash National Corporation (NYSE: WNC) is a premier North American manufacturer of diversified products for the transportation, logistics, and distribution sectors. Founded in 1985 by a group of transportation professionals seeking to innovate semi-trailer design, the company has grown into a publicly traded industrial leader with its headquarters in Lafayette, ...Wabash National Corporation (NYSE: WNC) is a premier North American manufacturer of diversified products for the transportation, logistics, and distribution sectors. Founded in 1985 by a group of transportation professionals seeking to innovate semi-trailer design, the company has grown into a publicly traded industrial leader with its headquarters in Lafayette, Indiana. As of 2024, Wabash employs approximately 6,700 people and generates revenue of about $1.95 billion, with a market capitalization of roughly $527 million. The company operates through two primary business segments: Transportation Solutions and Parts & Services.
The Transportation Solutions segment designs and manufactures a wide range of products, including dry van, refrigerated, and platform trailers; converter dollies; and various truck bodies for applications such as dry freight, service, insulated, stake, and refrigerated hauling. It also produces used trailers, laminated hardwood flooring, and specialized tank trailers made from stainless steel, aluminum, and fiberglass-reinforced polymer, which transport dairy products, food, beverages, oil, gas, chemicals, and dry bulk goods. This segment leverages advanced manufacturing technologies and materials, such as the patented DuraPlate composite walls, which provide durable and lightweight alternatives to traditional materials. Wabash markets its products under brands like Wabash, DuraPlate, DuraPlateHD, and EcoNex, distributing through direct sales, company-owned retail outlets, and an independent dealer network.
The Parts & Services segment focuses on aftermarket support, offering components and services including door repair, collision repair, and routine maintenance. It supplies aluminum and steel flatbed bodies, shelving systems for package delivery, internal partitions, roof racks, hitches, liftgates, and thermal control solutions. Additionally, this segment manufactures stainless steel storage tanks, silos, mixers, and processors for the dairy, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, chemical, craft brewing, and biotechnology industries, as well as composite products like truck bodies and overhead doors for industrial use.
Financially, Wabash has faced challenges in recent years, with negative net income and EBITDA margins, but it maintains a solid asset base and continues to invest in innovation and sustainability. The company's leadership, under CEO Brent L. Yeagy (who has over 25 years of industrial manufacturing experience), focuses on enhancing operational efficiency, developing connected solutions for fleet management, and promoting environmental stewardship through lightweight materials and aerodynamic designs. Wabash's strategic initiatives include expanding its service network and exploring electric and autonomous vehicle technologies to position itself for future industry trends. As a key player in the North American trailer market, Wabash remains committed to delivering high-quality, innovative products and services that support the evolving needs of its customers, from small fleet operators to major logistics companies.
YoYYoY means Year-over-Year. It compares the latest annual value with the previous annual value to show long-term trend strength.
QoQQoQ means Quarter-over-Quarter. It compares the latest quarter with the immediately previous quarter to show short-term momentum changes.
RevenueThe total money that came through the front door from selling things, before paying a single bill. Think of it as the grand total of every credit card swipe from customers. (YoY compares this year to last year's performance, while QoQ compares the current three months to the previous three).
$1.5B
-20.8%
+37.6%
Net IncomeThe absolute bottom line. If the company paid every single supplier, employee, banker, and tax collector, this is the actual money left in their pocket at the end of the day.
$211.5M
+174.4%
+49.3%
Gross MarginThe basic markup. If they sell a $100 pair of sneakers, this percentage tells you how much of that price tag is profit right after paying for the rubber and shoelaces, but before paying for things like store rent or TV commercials.
+3.8%
-72.0%
+205.3%
Operating MarginThe 'day job' efficiency score. Out of every dollar a customer spends, this shows how many cents the company keeps after making the product AND paying for all the everyday corporate overhead (like salaries, marketing, and keeping the lights on).
+20.8%
+213.8%
+64.9%
Net MarginThe final take-home percentage. When you strip away every conceivable cost, tax, and interest payment, this is the exact number of cents the company truly gets to keep from every dollar in sales.
+13.7%
+193.9%
+63.2%
Free Cash FlowThe holy grail of corporate cash. It's the spendable, physical money left over after the business pays for its daily operations AND buys the big, expensive upgrades (like new factories or servers) it needs to survive. This is the 'free' money they can use to pay dividends or buy back stock.
$-13.0M
-128.9%
+108.3%
FCF MarginThe ultimate cash conversion rate. It shows how good the company is at turning regular sales directly into cold, hard, spendable cash. A high percentage means the business is an absolute cash-printing machine.
-0.8%
-136.5%
+106.0%
Debt / EquityThe financial risk gauge. It compares how much of the company's empire was built using borrowed money (loans) versus the owners' own money (shareholders). A high number means they are heavily leveraged and playing a riskier game; a low number means they are playing it safe.
120.6%
-47.5%
+6.0%
Current RatioThe 12-month survival check. It simply compares the cash they have right now (plus things they can quickly turn into cash) against the immediate bills they absolutely must pay this year. A score above 1 means they have enough in the wallet to cover the upcoming bills without panicking.
1.39x
-28.1%
-1.2%
Total AssetsThe absolute size of the company's empire. It bundles together absolutely everything of value they own—from the cash in the register and the inventory in the warehouse, to the software patents in the vault and the factories on the ground.
Operator: Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining us and welcome to the Wabash Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Release Call. After today's prepared remarks, we will host a question-and-answer session. If you would like to ask a question, please press star one to raise your hand. To withdraw your question, press star one again. I will now hand the conference over to John Cummings, senior director of financial planning and analysis and investor relations. John? Please go ahead.
John Cummings: Thank you, and good afternoon, everyone. We appreciate you joining us on this call. With me today are Brent Yeagy, president and chief executive officer and Pat Keslin, chief financial officer. Before we get started, please note that this call is being recorded. I would also like to point out that our earnings release, the slide presentation supplementing today's call, and any non-GAAP reconciliations are available at ir.onewabash.com. Please refer to slide 2 in our earnings deck for the company's Safe Harbor disclosure addressing forward-looking statements. I will hand it off now to Brent.
Brent Yeagy: Thanks, John. Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining us today. I would like to start by discussing something that is fundamental to how we operate at Wabash. Safety. As we close out the second quarter, we are proud to have successfully improved our injury rate for the fourth consecutive quarter. 13% versus Q1 of 2026, 33 percent versus Q2 of 2025, And total injuries are down 15% year over year. As we look ahead to increasing dry van production, we are increasing focus on our onboarding process to elevate workplace safety and manufacturing quality. Our long-term target is an injury rate of less than one. Every day, we are moving closer to that attainment. The second quarter continued to strengthen our conviction that the freight market recovery is taking shape. We are seeing a healthier combination of supply-side forces, safety-focused federally led enforcement, and improving carrier economics. These factors are beginning to translate into better market fundamentals. Spot rates, contract rates, and tender rejection rates are moving in a direction that supports improved carrier profitability and that matters because carrier profitability is what ultimately frees up capital to support increased replacement demand expenditure. We fully opened up our order book for 2027 production in late June. That time is earlier than traditional order cycles, reflects what customers want. Which is earlier visibility and delivery windows and pricing. Our role is to help customers plan with greater confidence, And in a recovering market, those who plan early should be rewarded with better availability and greater certainty. Against that backdrop, we have continued to take proactive steps to position Wabash for the next stage of the cycle. We are controlling what we can control, aligning cost to demand, protecting liquidity, and continuing to invest in areas that …