One-glance verdict
Undervalued
$16.33 our estimate vs market $3.38
Wall Street consensus: $10.33 (-36.7% lower than our fair-value estimate)
79% below our estimate, below the bear case
Fundamentals snapshot
Proficient Auto Logistics, Inc.
PAL · NMS · Industrials · Integrated Freight & Logistics
Current price
$3.38
52-week range
$2.35 - $10.97
Market cap
$94.82M
Balance sheet
Distressed
-1.18x Concerning
Net debt $74.27M. Interest coverage shows how many times profit covers the interest bill.
What stands out
2 Rewards
3 Risks
2 rewards · 3 risks
- Reward Revenue grew 78.7% last year.
- Reward Free cash flow was positive in 4/10 years.
- Risk Insider ownership is only 14.2% (peer median: 50.9%).
- Risk Operating margin compressed from 11.3% to -2.9% over 3 years.
What this company does
Proficient Auto Logistics, Inc.
Proficient Auto Logistics, Inc. moves new cars from where they are made or arrive in the country to dealerships, auctions, and rental companies using its own trucks and drivers, as well as independent contractors. Most of its money comes from these car-moving services, which are important for getting vehicles to customers efficiently. This process is critical for the entire auto industry's supply chain (the network of companies that move goods from production to the customer).
How the company got here
Proficient Auto Logistics, Inc. (PAL) was officially formed in June 2023, but its roots go back much further through the five companies it acquired. These companies, including Proficient Auto Transport (founded in 1993), Delta Automotive Services, Tribeca Automotive, Sierra Mountain Group, and Deluxe Auto Carriers, were merged together. This strategic combination, often called a "roll-up strategy," aimed to create a larger, more competitive entity in the auto transport industry. The company then went public through an initial public offering (IPO) in May 2024, raising capital to solidify its operations and growth. PAL is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.
What it actually does
Proficient Auto Logistics provides a crucial service in the automotive world: moving cars. Think of them as the company that ensures new vehicles get from where they are made (factories), or arrive from overseas (ports), or come off long train journeys (rail yards), all the way to the car dealerships where you go to buy them. They also handle moving vehicles for rental car companies, auto auctions, and leasing businesses. Essentially, they are a key link in the supply chain (the journey a product takes from creation to customer) for the automotive industry, using a large fleet of trucks and trailers to get the job done.
Company Drivers
This is one of the main ways Proficient Auto Logistics makes money. In this segment, the company uses its own fleet of trucks and employs its own drivers to transport vehicles. This means PAL directly controls the equipment and the people handling the cars, which can lead to more consistent service. They handle various types of transport within this segment, including regular routes for car manufacturers (known as OEMs - Original Equipment Manufacturers), moving cars for the secondary market (like from auctions to dealerships), and longer-term contract services for specific clients. This segment represents a significant portion of their business, as it involves managing their own assets and workforce.
Subhaulers
The other primary way Proficient Auto Logistics generates revenue is through its Subhaulers segment. Instead of using only their own drivers and trucks, PAL also works with independent contractors, known as subhaulers or owner-operators. These are essentially smaller trucking businesses or individual drivers who own their own trucks and trailers. PAL contracts with them to help move vehicles, expanding their capacity without directly owning all the equipment or employing all the drivers. This allows them to be more flexible and handle a larger volume of transport jobs by leveraging external resources.
What management is betting on now
Proficient Auto Logistics's strategy revolves around leveraging its scale and integrated network to be a top-tier provider of finished vehicle logistics. Management is focused on continuing to grow the business by efficiently managing its large fleet of over 1,350 trucks and serving a wide range of customers, including all major global automakers that sell in the domestic market. They aim to provide seamless national coverage while remaining adaptable to local needs, emphasizing safety, reliability, and strong customer service to build long-term value for their clients and shareholders.
Price history
How the share price has moved
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Earnings history
Last 8 quarters — what happened
Click any quarter to read the call summary and what the numbers say.
FY2025 Q1
$-1.01M
FY2025 Q2
$11.27M
FY2026 Q1
$1.20M
FY2026 Q2
$-3.09M
Revenue
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Net income
$-3.90M
Diluted EPS
-0.14
Operating cash flow
$-1.25M
Free cash flow
$-3.09M
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Revenue
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Net income
$-6.49M
Diluted EPS
-0.23
Operating cash flow
$1.98M
Free cash flow
$1.20M
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Revenue
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Net income
$-28.25M
Diluted EPS
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Revenue
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Net income
$-3.02M
Diluted EPS
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Revenue
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Net income
$-1.56M
Diluted EPS
-0.06
Operating cash flow
$11.59M
Free cash flow
$11.27M
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Revenue
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Net income
$-3.19M
Diluted EPS
-0.12
Operating cash flow
$1.63M
Free cash flow
$-1.01M
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Revenue
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Net income
$12.74M
Diluted EPS
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Revenue
$91.51M
Net income
$-1.37M
Diluted EPS
-0.05
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Is it cheap or expensive?
Fair value $16.33 vs current price $3.38
Wall Street consensus is the average analyst price target: $10.33 (-36.7% lower than our fair-value estimate).
Our most-likely fair value is $16.33 a share — about 383.1% above today's price of $3.38, so the stock currently looks cheap (undervalued).
Is it drowning in debt?
Distressed
Net debt $74.3M. Interest coverage -1.2x.
Net debt
$74.27M
Interest coverage
-1.18x
Proficient Auto Logistics, Inc.'s profit covers its interest bill about 0.0 times over. which is weaker than most peers shown here and 1 peers sit below 1x, which is the danger zone where profit does not fully cover the interest bill.
Distressed
Worse cushion
Baseline
Better cushion
PAL
BASELINE
Proficient Auto Logistics, Inc.
Total debt $82.40M Interest coverage -1.18x This is the baseline the peer rows are being compared against.
Total debt $678.05M Interest coverage 1.23x This peer still has a real interest-payment cushion, while PAL does not.
Total debt $316.73M Interest coverage 1.70x This peer still has a real interest-payment cushion, while PAL does not.
Total debt $114.18M Interest coverage -5.38x Neither company has much profit cushion over interest right now.
Total debt $393.20M Interest coverage 5.00x This peer still has a real interest-payment cushion, while PAL does not.
What you should know
The case for and against PAL
2 Rewards
3 Risks
Rewards
-
Revenue grew 78.7% last year.
-
Free cash flow was positive in 4/10 years.
Risks
-
Insider ownership is only 14.2% (peer median: 50.9%).
-
Operating margin compressed from 11.3% to -2.9% over 3 years.
-
Return on equity was -13.0% last year — the company lost money on shareholders' equity.
The numbers
All the key metrics, grouped by purpose
Tap any ? icon to learn what it means.
Valuation
How expensive the stock looks
P/E (TTM)
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Forward P/E
7.23x
P/B
0.31x
P/S
0.22x
EV/EBITDA
6.92x
PEG ratio
0.27x
Profitability
How much profit each dollar creates
Gross margin
17.4%
Operating margin
-2.9%
Net margin
-9.9%
ROE
-13.0%
ROA
-2.0%
Health
Liquidity and balance-sheet strength
Debt / equity
0.27x
Current ratio
1.18x
Quick ratio
1.03x
Total debt
$82.40M
Total cash
$8.13M
Growth
How the business has been compounding
Revenue TTM
$422.76M
Revenue 5Y CAGR
49.0%
EPS TTM
-1.51
EPS 5Y CAGR
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Cash flow
How much cash the business throws off
Operating CF TTM
$13.95M
Free CF TTM
$29.28M
FCF margin
6.9%
Dividend
Shareholder payout
Yield
0.0%
Payout ratio
0.0%
Last ex-div date
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