RXO beats Q3 estimates as its $5.8 billion sale to C.H. Robinson heads toward a 2027 close

The freight broker earned $0.09 a share on revenue of $1.87 billion, against $1.83 billion expected.

RXO beat Q3 forecasts on the strength of its brokerage business, giving buyer C.H. Robinson more evidence that the $5.8 billion stock-and-cash deal is sound. Earnings came to $0.09 a share, $0.02 above expectations. Revenue was $1.87 billion, against $1.83 billion expected.

CEO Drew Wilkerson said RXO beat its own profit outlook because its Brokerage unit kept winning market share. He also pointed to a 900 basis-point rise from the prior quarter in the share of truckload freight sold at spot prices, and to strength in Last Mile and Managed Transportation. A basis point is one hundredth of a percentage point.

The deal was announced on October 5, 2026, and is expected to close in the first half of 2027. Both stocks already reflect it, so the quarter is less a stand-alone result than a check on what C.H. Robinson is paying for. Better fundamentals narrow the gap between the price set at announcement and the business being bought. That supports the case that the deal's synergy and earnings accretion targets remain within reach through the close.

C.H. Robinson reported its own Q3 beat on October 28. Its chief executive, Bozeman, said the company would use Lean methods and AI tools to avoid the integration problems that have hurt earlier freight-brokerage mergers. The question for both sets of shareholders is now whether the combination is executed well.