On October 24, 2023, Rush Enterprises Inc (RUSHA, Financial), the largest network of commercial vehicle dealerships in North America, announced its third-quarter results for the period ending September 30, 2023. The company reported revenues of $1.981 billion and a net income of $80.3 million, or $0.96 per diluted share. This compares to revenues of $1.86 billion and a net income of $90.4 million, or $1.06 per diluted share, for the same period in 2022. The company also declared a cash dividend of $0.17 per share of Class A and Class B common stock.
Financial Performance
In the third quarter of 2023, Rush Enterprises Inc (RUSHA, Financial) recognized a one-time, pre-tax charge of approximately $2.5 million, or $0.02 per share, related to a fire loss at its San Antonio, Texas facility. Despite this, the company's strong financial performance was primarily driven by healthy demand for new Class 8 and Class 4-7 commercial vehicles.
Aftermarket products and services accounted for approximately 59.0% of the company's total gross profits in the third quarter, with parts, service, and collision center revenues totaling $643.6 million, up 3.5% compared to the third quarter of 2022. The company achieved a quarterly absorption ratio of 132.8% in the third quarter of 2023, compared to 136.2% in the third quarter of 2022.
Commercial Vehicle Sales
New U.S. Class 8 retail truck sales totaled 68,010 units in the third quarter of 2023, up 0.1% over the third quarter of last year. The company sold 4,326 new Class 8 trucks in the third quarter, an increase of 3.0% compared to the third quarter of 2022. New U.S. Class 4 through 7 retail commercial vehicle sales totaled 65,683 units in the third quarter of 2023, up 9.1% compared to the third quarter of last year.
Leasing and Rental
Rush Truck Leasing operates 57 PacLease and Idealease franchises across the United States and Canada with more than 10,000 trucks in its lease and rental fleet and more than 2,000 trucks under contract maintenance agreements. Lease and rental revenue increased 4.4% in the third quarter of 2023 compared to the third quarter of 2022.
Financial Highlights
In the third quarter of 2023, the company’s gross revenues totaled $1.981 billion, a 6.2% increase from gross revenues of $1.86 billion reported for the third quarter of 2022. Net income for the third quarter was $80.3 million, or $0.96 per diluted share, compared to net income of $90.4 million, or $1.06 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2022.
During the third quarter of 2023, the company repurchased $43.5 million of its common stock, paid a cash dividend of $13.9 million, and ended the quarter with $192.0 million in cash and cash equivalents.
