Industry, Analysts See New Round of Truck Stock Offerings, Mergers

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rucking could see another round of initial public offerings and a sharp spike in the number of mergers and acquisitions this year as investors and fleets capitalize on the strengthening market for trucking stocks, analysts and industry officials said.

Continued industry consolidation, which has pushed up freight volumes and generated higher profit margins for remaining players, along with a rebounding economy and stock market make this a good time for companies to sell stock to the public, the analysts said.

Meanwhile, some fleets have been buying up rival firms to increase fleet size just as used equipment values are recovering and new driver work rules take effect.

“Stocks are trading at the high end of their multiple ranges. I can’t think of a better time for a company to become public,” said transportation analyst Jason Seidl of Avondale Partners.

This article appears in the Jan. 12 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.