Latest news with #Strickland
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Five takeaways from the State of Freight for July: What earnings and the indices are saying about the market
Tariffs have been a major focus of recent installments of FreightWaves' monthly State of Freight webinar, held in conjunction with SONAR, but they took a back seat this month to various data points. What those data points are saying–whether they are about company finances or numbers on demand and capacity–was the focus of the July webinar with FreightWaves and SONAR CEO Craig Fuller and Zach Strickland, SONAR's director of freight market intelligence. Here are five takeaways from Thursday's session. One index rising, the other falling Two trends are showing up in SONAR data that at times can reflect a degree of correlation but isn't doing so now: the outbound tender rejection index (OTRI) is rising, while the outbound tender volume index (OTVI) is falling. The OTVI is reflecting what might be expected given that everybody in the sector still sees the freight market in some degree of a recession. But the OTRI is rising, a sign of tightening capacity as independent owner operators take their trucks off the road and fleets continue to disappear, not able to survive current conditions. Fuller said capacity had been on an upswing for several years, 'with a flood of new participants, companies and truck drivers.' But Strickland showed a chart showing recent increases in net revocations of motor carrier authorities granted by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Fuller said he believed enforcement of the English-language only was having just a 'fractional' impact on capacity. But it could become a significant issue if there is a rebound in the housing market that leads to more trucking demand. Strickland and Fuller discussed possible other reasons for the rise in revocations, including impacts from the Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse. 'This is an ongoing thing that we really need to pay attention to,' Strickland said. Earnings season and what it is saying The July State of Freight webinar occurred in the middle of numerous transportation companies releasing their quarterly reports. The performance of a few companies came in for discussion, including Heartland Express (NASDAQ: HTLD), which posted yet another quarterly loss Thursday. Fuller noted that Heartland's acquisitions over the years have been in the commodity truckload business, 'based on a 1990's long haul business that is no longer there.' He also spoke from personal experience as a member of the family that founded U.S. Xpress, whose profile and financial troubles were similar to what Heartland Express is going through. U.S. Xpress eventually was purchased by Knight Swift. 'The long haul business is dead for those truckload operators,' Fuller said. 'Unfortuantely, Heartland just can't seem to get a handle on that.' U.S. Xpress is now a division of Knight Swift (NYSE: KNX). In Knight Swift's second quarter earnings report, the company said U.S. Xpress had seen its operating margin improve by 300 basis points over the last year. 'Knight Swift has really proven that it can bring U.S. Xpress back to some level of sustainability,' Fuller said, noting the contrast with Heartland's struggles. Short haul ascendant The discussion about Heartland's ties to long haul truckload activity led Strickland to pull up a chart from SONAR showing its index for short haul versus long haul activity. Generally, long haul runs at a higher index, but that has flipped in recent months. The data comes from tenders. Long haul business is anything over 800 miles, Strickland said. Fuller said he believes the shift is part of a longer term trend. But he also said he believes the sort of reindustrialization of the U.S. economy being pursued by the Trump administration could reverse that change. But there's a risk for trucking, he said. As the long haul sector of the freight market becomes more dependent on import activity, 'then a lot of that is going to be containerized and going to go on the railroads.' Across the country on one company's set of tracks With negotiations ongoing between Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) and Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP) that would create the country's first true transcontinental railroad, the impact on the transportation sector became a topic of discussion. Describing railroads as a 'dream business,' Fuller noted that Union Pacific profitability has exceeded that of Microsoft at times. 'The consolidation ends up making them that much more profitable,' he said. As to the question of who else might benefit from a consolidation besides the railroads, Fuller said 'I would argue that rarely does a real merger benefit the shippers.' However, a consolidation between the two railroads, UP in the west and NSC in the east, would likely aid large shippers like Amazon. . Owner operators and brokers would likely lose, he said, but he added that large intermodal carriers such as J.B. Hunt (NASDAQ: JBHT) or HubGroup (NASDAQ: HUBG) would benefit. 'I think the traditional railroad shippers, the big commodity players like coal or grains, they probably lose because the service quality will likely deteriorate for them. But it should improve for intermodal.' A revival of freight tech Fuller said that 'one of the most exciting things happening at freight now' is a revived interest in freight technology. Prior to the pandemic, Fuller said there were a slew of technology vendors offering new products, backed by venture capital. In his discussion, he only mentioned one specific company that has been active: Triumph Financial (NASDAQ: TFIN), which bought Greenscreens AI earlier this year and is looking to expand its Intelligence division. But beyond that, he said, 'there's just a lot of deal flow happening.' He described much of the activity as being around 'next generation' technology, like freight tech powered by AI. More articles by John Kingston Yet another broker liability case, this time in the Fifth Circuit, adds to the growing mix Much happened at Triumph Financial during the quarter; USPS dispute settled Supply chain software provider Manhattan Associates soars after strong revenue growth The post Five takeaways from the State of Freight for July: What earnings and the indices are saying about the market appeared first on FreightWaves. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
USA Today
18-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Sean Strickland suspended by NAC with disciplinary hearing scheduled
Sean Strickland can't fight until the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) considers recent actions accounted for. The NAC has temporarily suspended Strickland, with a disciplinary hearing set for Wednesday in Las Vegas. While the NAC did not respond to MMA Junkie's request for confirmation Thursday, all signs point to Strickland's suspension stemming from an incident at a recent Tuff-N-Uff event. At Tuff-N-Uff 145 on June 29, Strickland cornered teammate Miles Hunsinger, who was submitted by Luis Hernandez. Moments after the finish, Hernandez taunted Strickland, who then charged the cage and punched Hernandez twice. Chris Curtis also entered the cage with Strickland but did not throw blows. Curtis recently told Uncrowned he was fined as a result. It's unclear if a disciplinary resolution will be reached ahead of Wednesday's meeting in Las Vegas. The suspension could be extended to a future meeting. But as long as it's ongoing, Strickland will be unable to compete. "I wasnt even vocal in the corner," Strickland wrote on X after the incident. "The guy just wanted to antagonize me for a highlight.... What frustrates me is even during the fight he was insulting me. The athletic commissions job is to prevent this from happening. There was no warning. No penalty. They tell merhab to shut up all the time.. Even the announcers were calling it."
Business Wire
17-07-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Windstream Supports 2025 National Veterans Wheelchair Games
LITTLE ROCK, Ark.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Windstream, a provider of advanced communications services, is proud to help sponsor the 2025 National Veterans Wheelchair Games, which take place July 17-22 in Minneapolis. This is the fifth consecutive year that the company has helped sponsor the Wheelchair Games. The Wheelchair Games are open to all U.S. veterans with spinal cord injuries, amputations, multiple sclerosis, or other central neurological conditions who require a wheelchair for athletic competition. Every year, hundreds of American heroes from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and the post-9/11 era compete in this celebration of courage and camaraderie. Windstream is the sponsor of the 2025 boccia competition, and company representatives will participate in the medal ceremony. 'Windstream is proud to once again help sponsor the world's largest annual wheelchair sports event solely for military veterans,' said Paul Strickland, vice president of consumer support for Windstream. 'We are always inspired to witness the courage and tenacity demonstrated at the Wheelchair Games,' Strickland said. 'It's an honor for our company to be part of this wonderful competition.' Strickland, a former captain in the U.S. Marine Corps, is executive sponsor of Windstream's WINVETS Employee Resource Group, which helps veterans transition to civilian life, the communications industry and their careers at Windstream. Approximately 13% of Windstream's workforce is made up of veterans, National Guard or Reserve members, or military spouses. Windstream was recently named a VETS Indexes 5 Star Employer for its commitment to recruiting, hiring, retaining, developing, and supporting veterans and the military-connected community. The Department of Veterans Affairs launched the Wheelchair Games in 1981 with 7 events and 77 athletes. Paralyzed Veterans of America joined the VA in 1985 to help expand the event's mission and reach. About Windstream Windstream's quality-first approach connects customers to new opportunities and possibilities by leveraging its nationwide network to deliver a full suite of advanced communications services. We provide fiber-based broadband to residential and small business customers in 18 states, managed cloud communications, networking and security services for mid-to-large enterprises and government entities across the U.S., and customized wavelength and dark fiber solutions for carriers, content providers and hyperscalers in the U.S. and Canada. Windstream, a privately held company headquartered in Little Rock, Ark., operates three brands including Kinetic, Windstream Enterprise and Windstream Wholesale. Additional information is available at Follow us on X @Windstream. Category: Corporate
USA Today
11-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Din Thomas: Sean Strickland 'could possibly be' best UFC middleweight: 'It's depressing'
Din Thomas thinks Sean Strickland is focusing his energy in the wrong places. Since upsetting Israel Adesanya to claim the UFC middleweight title at UFC 293, Strickland has lost two of his past three – both in title fights against Dricus Du Plessis. His first fight against Du Plessis at UFC 297 was a close split decision loss, but the rematch at UFC 312 went much more in favor of the champion. Thomas lauded Strickland (29-7 MMA, 16-7 UFC) for his work ethic, but doesn't see it translating to his fights. "The stories you hear about Sean Strickland from every high-level guy that I know that's ever worked with him said that he's the best guy in the room," Thomas said on Daniel Cormier's YouTube channel. "I believe that he could possibly be the best 185-pound fighter in the world right now if he put his energy into actually fighting in the big fights. If he put the same amount of energy that he does on fighting YouTubers and having beef with other people, if he put that energy into fighting the top contenders in the big fights, he would be winning." Daniel Cormier brought up Strickland punching a regional fighter who beat his teammate while he was cornering at Tuff-N-Uff 145 as an example to explain why he thinks Strickland's mind isn't in the right place. "That's my point," Thomas said. "If he would take that energy, if he had that energy against DDP, he'd still have the belt. It's depressing. It's the fact that he's so in the weeds right now, he can't see the big picture, because when his career is over, he's going to look back and go, 'Damn.' He can't see it right now. He's a knucklehead, and I'm sure Eric Nicksick tells him all the time, 'Hey man, you've got to focus on your career, focus on doing the right things, because you're letting these dudes beat you, and you're better than them.' It's despicable."
Otago Daily Times
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Return to top level a triumph
If there is one thing guaranteed to put a smile on Beth Strickland's face, it is gymnastics. The sport has been her passion for as long as she can remember and she is breaking down walls to help give back to the next generation. Strickland started rhythmic gymnastics as a child in Australia and continued when her family moved to Nelson in 2012. The 26-year-old was the national level eight and level nine champion in her final two years of school, in 2015 and 2016, before her coach retired, leaving Strickland to take a break as well. Strickland, who is now at level 10, kept an eye on the sport, and when a position for an athlete adviser on the national rhythmic technical committee came up in 2021, she jumped at the chance to help. It was after landing in Dunedin for her career as a union organiser for the New Zealand Nurses Organisation that Strickland competed in a masters competition and realised she still had what it took. Returning to fulltime competition in 2023 had been hard after a nearly seven-year break, but had been worth it, Strickland said. She qualified as part of a 14-strong team from New Zealand that competed in the Koop Cup in Canada earlier this year. The event was combined with the aesthetic group gymnastics world cup — "that brought an extra energy to it" — where she placed seventh out of 27 gymnasts in ribbon. The squad then headed to the Manitoba provincial championships, where she placed second overall, and she backed that up with fourth overall at an event in Christchurch. "It feels really, really good that despite the fact that I'm now 26, I'm still improving and getting back better," she said. "From my first year in 2023, placing last most of the time, I'm now up there and can actually hold my own." Last month, she also won two trophies for being the level 10 Otago champion and earning the highest score in Otago at the Otago rhythmic gymnastics championships. The sport helped Strickland fuel her creative side. She picked her own music and designed and decorated her own leotards, which her coach, Keita McComb, then sewed. Strickland, who trains with Astra Gymnastics at the Caledonian, loved working with McComb, who is also the chairwoman of the national rhythmic technical committee. Strickland described her as a pillar of the rhythmic community. If there was one thing that drew her back to the floor, it was her love of the sport. "I'm so incredibly passionate about rhythmic gymnastics," Strickland said. "It just makes me really happy and I never wanted to stop competing — it was just circumstances." Strickland — the oldest active competitive rhythmic gymnast in New Zealand — is giving back to the sport through the national technical committee, which introduced a restructure of the level system recently. She is also the chairwoman of the national athletes council, which was created in the past few years to provide an avenue for athletes to provide feedback and inform decisions. "Something I also feel personally passionate about is helping gymnasts stay in the sport for longer. "I mean, it is hard when you're an adult ... for me, it's just so worth it." Giving back had always been important to Strickland, to help change the landscape of the sport. Through the years she had seen a lot of good in the sport, but there had been some "not so good" as well, and making sure young gymnasts were protected and had a positive experience was crucial. "Historically, there is a reason why gymnasts retire so young and that's because their minds and bodies can't continue, but we've seen a really big shift from that over the past few years. "Gymnastics New Zealand has done a really good job at helping move away from how things used to be. "Making sure that gymnasts aren't pushed to do extreme moves, or aren't being coached in a way that is unhealthy for them mentally, makes an insanely big difference in people being able to continue." Strickland, who is also a judge, loved the people in the sport and counted herself lucky to train at various clubs throughout the country when she was on the road for work.
