JB Hunt Falls on Disappointing Revenue

JB Hunt (NASDAQ: JBHT) met Wall Street earnings expectations with help from lower fuel costs, although sales were lower than expected.The transportation company's SG&A expenses were $256 million, or about 20.4% of revenue – the lowest as revenue percentage in at least at least the past five years, mainly due to lower fuel prices compared to previous quarters.Earnings rose 23% to $80.5 million, or 67 cents a share, up from $65.7 million or 53 cents a share in the same period last year. That met analyst expectations or 67 cents a share. The company's gross margins were 15.5%, higher than the previous quarter.Revenue was $1.26 billion, short of the $1.3 billion analysts had been expecting.It was seen as disappointing for a growth stock to meet expectations through cost cuts. Shares fell more than 7% to $53.92 in morning trading.JB Hunt had been one of the rare stocks that rose strongly in June, partly on the drop in fuel prices. The stock rose more than 12% from the start of the second quarter to its June peak.Also a disappointment was that the company's intermodal segment – its largest – saw revenue rise 13% from the same period a year earlier; some had expected stronger growth.Intermodal volume – shipping goods in containers that can fit on both trucks and trains-- was 12.6%, down from 16% in the first quarter.