10.9.3.2Vertical

LTL Consolidators & Co-Loaders

Companies consolidating LTL shipments for efficiency.

Market snapshot

These figures describe Less-than-Truckload (LTL) (10.9.3), the segment that LTL Consolidators & Co-Loaders sits within. They are not figures for LTL Consolidators & Co-Loaders on its own.

Market size
~$66B
Growth
~7.3%CAGR (2017–22, nominal)
Companies
~7,204 firms
Firms by employee count

93.2% of firms have fewer than 20 employees: 6,714 micro-businesses, below most mandates.

The investable universe490 firms with 20+ employees
20–99
30562%
100–499
10722%
500+
7816%

Structurally the most attractive freight segment, because a terminal network cannot be replicated quickly. That is the barrier LTL has and truckload does not. Capacity leaving the market has been absorbed rather than replaced, which has kept pricing firmer than the freight cycle alone would suggest.

NAICS 484122. U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Statistics of U.S. Businesses; U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Economic Census.

Business model & economics

Revenue model

LTL freight rates through terminal networks

Key economics

Revenue per firm
$9,118,332
Revenue per employee
$216,076
Employees per firm
43.7
Recurring revenue
Moderate–High

recurring B2B freight

EBITDA margin
Higher than TL; network- and density-driven
Capex intensity
High

Characteristics

  • Balanced cost base: payroll is 30% of revenue, leaving room to scale margin without cutting staff
  • Moderate strategic-buyer pool: 78 firms exceed 500 employees, so a scaled asset has buyers, but not many
  • Network-based with high terminal barriers.
  • Led by Old Dominion (best-in-class), XPO, Saia.
  • Yellow's 2023 collapse redistributed share and terminals.

NAICS 484122. U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Statistics of U.S. Businesses; U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Economic Census.

Geographic concentration

AlabamaAlaskaArizonaColoradoFloridaGeorgiaIndianaKansasMaineMassachusettsMinnesotaNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOklahomaPennsylvaniaSouth DakotaTexasWyomingConnecticutMissouriWest VirginiaIllinoisNew MexicoArkansasCaliforniaDelawareDistrict of ColumbiaHawaiiIowaKentuckyMarylandMichiganMississippiMontanaNew HampshireNew YorkOhioOregonTennesseeUtahVirginiaWashingtonNebraskaSouth CarolinaIdahoNevadaVermontLouisianaNew JerseyWisconsinRhode Island

New Jersey at nearly five times the national concentration, then Wisconsin and Rhode Island. LTL follows terminal networks rather than highways, and terminals cluster around the dense industrial and port markets that generate the most partial loads.

New JerseyWisconsinRhode Island

U.S. Census Bureau, 2022 Statistics of U.S. Businesses (firms by state), NAICS 484122. Concentration shown by location quotient.

M&A deal context

Deal activityHigh

Who’s acquiring

  • LTL carriers
  • Network & terminal acquirers
  • PE-backed platforms

What’s driving deals

  • Post-Yellow share and terminal redistribution.
  • Terminal-density and network advantages.
  • Pricing discipline and service quality.

Find LTL Consolidators & Co-Loaders acquisition targets

Search Acquisera’s index for companies classified under LTL Consolidators & Co-Loaders (10.9.3.2) and build a targeted deal pipeline.

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