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Proficient Auto Logistics buys Hansen & Adkins for $130M
Auto hauler optimistic about sector outlook after tough Q2
Proficient's acquisition of Hansen & Adkins is expected to close in the middle of August. (Proficient Auto Logistics)
Key Takeaways:
- Proficient will acquire Hansen & Adkins for $130 million in a deal expected to close in mid-August.
- The acquisition will more than double Proficient’s company-owned fleet capacity and expand operations into Canada.
- Proficient reported lower deliveries, a higher operating ratio and a wider quarterly loss in the second quarter.
Proficient Auto Logistics will buy Hansen & Adkins for $130 million, the company said, a deal that would make the combined entity the largest auto hauler in North America at a time when industry margins are tightening.
Jacksonville, Fla.-based Proficient — which utilizes both company-owned and subhauler vehicles — has around 900 tractors and trailers and 800 employees, according to its website.
Merging with Hansen & Adkins will more than double Proficient’s company-owned fleet capacity, said the company, which is the only publicly traded auto hauler.
Hansen & Adkins has more than 900 drivers, operational and support management personnel.
The deal is expected to close in the middle of August.
Proficient, which was formed from the merger of five auto haulers in May 2024, will make its first foray into Canada following the acquisition.
“The combination of the two companies will create a stronger platform for sustainable long-term value creation built on proven leadership, operational discipline and industry-leading capabilities,” said Proficient CEO Rick O’Dell.
On a combined basis, Proficient expects to move more than 4 million vehicles annually across the North American automotive supply chain, the company said.
In the quarter ending June 30, Proficient’s deliveries totaled 580,962 vehicles, a decrease of 8% compared with the second quarter of 2025.
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O'Dell
Company deliveries fell 7.2% year over year in Q2 to 204,778 from 220,578. Subhauler deliveries fell 8.4% in the most recent quarter to 376,184 from 410,848 in the same period 12 months earlier.
Margins on those deliveries decreased, too. The company posted an operating ratio of 99.5 in Q2, compared with 96.7 in the year-ago period. Carriers’ operating ratio provides insight into how well a company is balancing its costs and revenue generation. The lower the ratio, the better a company’s performance.
As a result, Proficient’s losses widened to $3.2 million in the most recent quarter from $100,000 in Q2 2025.
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O’Dell said the auto-haul industry was at an inflection point, noting that prices lagged cost inflation even as industry capacity tightened. However, O’Dell said improvement was coming.
“Recovering automotive production, normalized dealer inventories and improving inventory turnover are supporting higher finished-vehicle shipment volumes,” the company’s top executive told analysts and investors during Proficient’s Q2 earnings call after the market closed Aug. 10.
“At the same time, regulatory actions and driver recertification requirements are contributing to tighter capacity following a multiyear freight recession, supporting improving spot rates and carrier pricing dynamics,” he added.