Mullen Group has delivered one of its strongest quarters on record at a time when much of the transportation industry remains focused on costs, freight demand and operating efficiency. The Canadian trucking and logistics company reported $51.5 million in third-quarter net income, a sharp increase from a year earlier, while management said its overall workforce was roughly 160 people smaller.
That combination is striking, but it requires context. The lower headcount should not automatically be interpreted as 160 layoffs, and Mullen’s growth was not produced simply by cutting jobs. Revenue reached a record $653.2 million as internal growth, fuel surcharges, acquisitions and improving performance across several business lines pushed earnings higher. The quarter offers a revealing look at how a major carrier is trying to become more productive while preparing for a potentially stronger freight market.
Profit Climbed 55% as Mullen Set New Quarterly Records
Mullen Group reported net income of $51.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2026, compared with $33.2 million during the same quarter of 2025. That represented a year-over-year increase of 55.1%. Diluted earnings came to $0.52 per share, compared with $0.36 a year earlier. Revenue increased 16.3%, reaching a company-record $653.2 million from $561.8 million. For a transportation business operating in a market that management continues to describe as relatively restrained, the gap between revenue growth and profit growth is particularly notable.
Operating performance improved as well. Adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization reached $118.6 million, up 23% from $96.4 million. The corresponding adjusted margin increased to 18.2% of revenue from 17.2%. Mullen attributed the improvement to better results from existing operations, contributions from acquisitions and lower corporate costs. In other words, the quarter was not simply a case of higher freight volumes translating into more revenue; the company was extracting more operating earnings from each dollar coming through the business.
The 160 Fewer Workers Figure Needs Some Important Context
One of the most attention-grabbing details disclosed during Mullen’s earnings discussion was that overall headcount had fallen by approximately 160 people from a year earlier even as revenue increased. Management connected the results with productivity improvements, cost discipline and technology. The company’s earnings release still described an organization with more than 8,500 associates, making the reduction relatively modest compared with the scale of Mullen’s overall workforce. More importantly, management did not characterize the entire 160-person decline as a mass layoff program.
That distinction matters. A year-over-year headcount decrease can reflect layoffs, natural attrition, unfilled vacancies, restructuring or staffing changes across individual business units. Without a more detailed breakdown, describing all 160 positions as layoffs would go beyond what the company disclosed. What can be said is that Mullen produced considerably more revenue and profit with fewer people overall. For terminal managers, dispatch operations and individual business units, that means productivity has become increasingly important. Chairman and senior executive officer Murray Mullen told analysts that in an economy with limited growth, businesses have to improve how efficiently they operate rather than relying solely on a larger market.
Mullen Added $91.4 Million in Revenue — but It Came From Three Different Sources
The $91.4-million increase in quarterly revenue was not generated by a single surge in freight demand. Mullen reported that $44.3 million came from internal growth at its businesses, making organic expansion the largest contributor. Another $37.7 million came from higher fuel surcharge revenue, while acquisitions generated approximately $9.4 million in incremental sales. Together, those three components explain essentially the entire increase from the previous year’s $561.8 million in quarterly revenue.
The fuel surcharge component is especially important when interpreting the headline growth rate. Higher diesel prices caused surcharge revenue to rise, particularly in the less-than-truckload and logistics and warehousing businesses. Those surcharges help carriers recover fuel costs, but they are different from gaining a new customer or carrying significantly more freight. Internal growth therefore provides a clearer signal of underlying operating momentum. Mullen reported particularly strong internal growth in its U.S. third-party logistics, specialized and industrial services, and logistics and warehousing operations. Acquisitions provided another layer of expansion, reinforcing a strategy Mullen has used repeatedly over its history to broaden its transportation and logistics network.
Every Major Operating Segment Increased Revenue
Growth was spread across all four of Mullen’s operating segments. Logistics and Warehousing, the largest contributor during the quarter, generated $236.2 million in revenue, an increase of 13.5%. Less-Than-Truckload revenue rose 10.4% to $218.3 million. Specialized and Industrial Services climbed 24.7% to $131.1 million, while U.S. and International Logistics produced the highest percentage increase, rising 30.4% to $70.3 million. That diversification helps explain why Mullen can perform well even when individual freight categories remain uneven.
The drivers behind those increases differed considerably. Logistics and Warehousing benefited from higher fuel surcharges, mining-related freight, cross-border shipments and freight forwarding activity. Specialized and Industrial Services received a lift from pipeline hauling and stringing, water-management services and increased drilling activity. Meanwhile, U.S. and International Logistics benefited from stronger demand at HAUListic as American freight capacity tightened. Less-Than-Truckload experienced comparatively modest underlying revenue growth excluding fuel surcharges, but its profitability improved as Mullen increased lane density and handled a greater proportion of higher-margin freight. The result was not one booming transportation market, but several businesses finding different ways to improve.
Mullen Is Deliberately Turning Away Some Low-Margin Freight
More revenue is not automatically better revenue in trucking. A truck can stay busy while producing a poor return if pricing fails to cover equipment, labour, insurance, maintenance, fuel and capital costs. Mullen has increasingly emphasized that distinction. During 2026, the company has deliberately “demarketed” some customers and freight that did not meet its return expectations. In the latest quarter, some less-than-truckload businesses continued moving away from lower-rate customers to prioritize higher-quality freight.
The strategy is visible in the margins. Less-Than-Truckload adjusted operating income increased 20.3% to $43.8 million even though segment revenue rose only 10.4%. Its operating margin reached 20.1%, helped by better lane density, a greater mix of higher-margin freight and fuel-cost recovery. Specialized and Industrial Services produced a similar result, with adjusted operating earnings rising 37.3% to $32.4 million as its operating margin increased to 24.7%. Management has also said it is reluctant to accept certain long-term fixed-price contracts that could leave Mullen unable to recover future labour expenses. That discipline can mean refusing work today in hopes of building a more profitable book of business tomorrow.
Tighter U.S. Trucking Rules Are Creating an Opportunity at the Border
Cross-border transportation has emerged as another area of opportunity. Mullen told analysts that stronger business in some cross-border operations was not necessarily the result of a major increase in total freight demand. Instead, management argued that tighter U.S. qualification and entry requirements have reduced the number of competitors able to perform certain work, creating more opportunity for carriers capable of meeting the applicable standards. Mullen’s senior financial officer also cautioned that cross-border transportation remains a relatively small part of the broader Logistics and Warehousing segment.
There is a wider regulatory backdrop to that argument. U.S. regulators tightened requirements in 2026 surrounding non-domiciled commercial driver licences, while federal enforcement of commercial-driver English-language proficiency requirements also became more aggressive. Those measures should not be interpreted as rules specifically targeting Mullen’s Canadian drivers, but they are part of a broader tightening of qualification and enforcement standards in the American trucking industry. When fewer operators qualify to participate in a market, compliant carriers can benefit from reduced capacity even if the total amount of freight has not dramatically increased. That appears to be the dynamic Mullen believes is benefiting portions of its network.
The Balance Sheet Is Strong, but Operating Cash Flow Fell
Mullen finished September with $213.9 million in cash and cash equivalents and $381.3 million in working capital. It also reported $525 million of unused borrowing capacity under its bank credit facilities. Those figures give management significant flexibility to buy equipment, finance acquisitions and respond to major transportation projects if customers begin issuing contracts. Total net debt stood at $817.5 million under the definition used in Mullen’s private-placement debt agreements. After accounting for cash, adjusted total net debt was $603.6 million.
There was, however, an important counterpoint to the quarter’s soaring accounting profit. Net cash generated from operating activities fell to $78.2 million from $102.7 million in the comparable quarter, a decline of 23.9%. For the first nine months of the year, operating cash flow was $204.2 million compared with $220.4 million a year earlier. That does not erase the improvement in profitability, but it demonstrates why profit and cash generation need to be considered separately. Mullen’s balance sheet provides substantial financial capacity, yet the quarter’s cash-flow performance was weaker than the headline earnings number might suggest at first glance.
Another Acquisition Could Add Roughly $80 Million in Annual Revenue
Mullen’s expansion strategy continues to involve buying established transportation and logistics businesses. Just days before releasing its third-quarter results, the company announced definitive agreements to acquire Willson International, a customs brokerage and trade-compliance company with operations in Canada and the United States. Mullen said Willson employs more than 330 people and has operated for more than a century. The transaction was expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to the conditions attached to the deal.
Mullen expects Willson to contribute approximately $80 million in annual revenue and said the company has relatively limited ongoing capital requirements outside technology investment. Its Canadian operations are expected to join Mullen’s Logistics and Warehousing segment, while the American business will become part of U.S. and International Logistics. Willson is also expected to remain independently operated under its existing management team. That is important when considering Mullen’s current workforce reduction: the approximately 160-person decrease reflects the company’s existing operating picture, while a completed Willson transaction would bring more than 330 employees into the broader organization. Efficiency and expansion are therefore happening simultaneously rather than representing contradictory strategies.
Mullen Is Preparing for Bigger Projects Without Counting on Them Yet
Management sees major resource, infrastructure, mining, LNG and pipeline developments as potential sources of future freight demand, but it is trying not to spend as though every announced project is guaranteed to proceed. Murray Mullen told analysts that the company has seen plenty of project announcements but is still waiting for actual purchase orders in several cases. Management expects a major contract can require roughly six to 12 months of preparation before work begins, meaning the company has to balance being ready with avoiding unnecessary equipment and labour costs.
That balance is already visible in its capital decisions. Mullen has ordered approximately 100 trucks partly to ensure equipment availability for potential large projects. Management has said the equipment could be redeployed through the existing network if anticipated work does not materialize. The company is also developing a Vancouver-area logistics hub known as MTL Logistics Park, intended to consolidate operations and improve its position for West Coast trade. Taken together, the strategy behind the record quarter becomes clearer: Mullen is reducing unnecessary costs, concentrating on higher-margin freight, investing selectively and keeping enough financial capacity available to move quickly when customers finally turn major project announcements into signed transportation contracts.
