Sep 10, 2026 earnings call — Quarterly results and AI investment focus
Record Q1 revenue $193.6 million and record adjusted EBITDA $89.8 million (46% of revenue).
Revenue $0.2B (est $0.2B) · EPS $0.57 (est $0.57)
Key quotes
"We have designed our AI agent layer that will accommodate external and external agents accessing their functions and data on the Descartes Global Logistics Network."
"The first is global trade intelligence, which is 1 of the largest contributors to our services revenue. And had a strong growth in the quarter compared to where it was a year ago."
"MacroPoint provides real time visibility to shipments. Brokers and shippers tell us the loads they want tracked."
Analyst Q&A 9
When supply-chain complexity helps or hurts
Q (Jackson Bogli · William Blair): The analyst asked whether rising geopolitical and supply-chain complexity will drive more demand or become a headwind for Descartes. He also asked how the company thinks about using cash and M&A versus building, given valuations.
A: Management said more complexity generally increases customer use of their software, so complexity mostly helps. But if complexity severely harms the economy and shipping volumes fall, Descartes also suffers. They are actively evaluating M&A and remain engaged while weighing buy versus build decisions in light of AI.
"Most of the complexity helps us regardless of how much there is." — Edward J. Ryan (CEO)
Will AI agents need new sales methods?
Q (Chris Quintero · Morgan Stanley): The analyst asked if current quarter challenges will slow growth or are mostly risk disclosure, and how Descartes plans to sell AI and agent solutions (forward-deployed engineers, etc.).
A: Management said their cautious disclosure highlights risks, but the business is doing well despite a down freight market. They explained many AI features improve service for existing contracted customers without new sales, and agents (like for truckers) increase tracking rates and recurring revenue.
"We have a lot of solutions that, improve things for our customers internally without them really having to sign up for anything new." — Edward J. Ryan (CEO)
Why the quarter beat expectations
Q (Lachlan Brown · Rothschild and Company Redburn): The analyst asked which drivers led the quarter to come in ahead of plan and produce strong organic services growth.
A: Management said the Global Trade Intelligence business and ecommerce filing work (Type 80/Type 86 change) drove share gains because competitors struggled with speed. They also cited fleet management strength and MacroPoint tracking gains (87% to 93%) as material contributors.
"it is global trade intelligence business did very well, as you might have expected." — Edward J. Ryan (CEO)
Margins and using AI internally
Q (Sam Schmidt · CIBC): The analyst asked how management thinks about EBITDA margins staying at the high end of guidance and how AI is being used internally and tracked.
A: Management said EBITDA is around 46% and the range can be affected by FX and acquisitions; they will be cautious about guidance. They said they are using AI to produce more software and productivity, choosing to reinvest efficiency gains into product rather than cutting headcount to drive future revenue.
"I am using it to produce more stuff because I think that is gonna produce more revenue for us in the future." — Edward J. Ryan (CEO)
Air cargo and ocean impacts this quarter
Q (Mark Schappel · Loop Capital Mark): The analyst asked what happened in Air Cargo this quarter and how the ~4% trucking decline maps to Ocean Shipping performance.
A: Management said air was hit by flight restrictions around Iran, causing cancellations and disruptions for carriers in that region. They explained some cargo shifted between air and ocean, ocean routes lengthened (around Cape of Good Hope), which raised ocean prices and removed capacity — so effects were mixed across air and ocean.
"And so that ended up being a little bit of harm to ocean carriage and but also, you know, took some capacity out of the ocean space and helped them raise prices so maybe they did not suffer as much." — Edward J. Ryan (CEO)
Does trucking decline affect air volumes?
Q (Mark Schappel · Loop Capital Mark): The analyst followed up asking if the 4% year-over-year trucking decline translates into the air cargo business or other modes.
A: Management said the 4% drop in trucking likely does not translate much into the air space. They indicated the trucking decline is not a major driver of air volumes.
Does Amazon’s new service threaten Descartes?
Q (Richard Chu · Scotiabank): The analyst asked whether Amazon’s new supply-chain services increase fragmentation and multicarrier complexity (driving demand) or risk displacing parts of Descartes’ value chain.
A: Management said Amazon is a big customer and Descartes avoids competing with forwarders or freight management to remain neutral. They expect to continue working with Amazon because some network services are more efficient for a neutral provider to run than for a single company to replicate.
"No. I mean, they are a big customer of ours, and, we do not compete with any you know, forwarder or freight management capability." — Edward J. Ryan (CEO)
Can customers build their own GTI with AI?
Q (John Shao · TD Cowen): The analyst asked if this quarter’s GTI growth reduces the risk that customers could use AI to replicate Descartes’ Global Trade Intelligence database.
A: Management said they never thought replication was likely because the GTI data is massive, heterogeneous by country, and hard to normalize and deliver in customer formats; the cost per customer is low so it is not economical for one customer to duplicate it. They view the replication concern as unrealistic given the work and risk involved.
"If you add all that stuff up, no 1's you know, people said that to us, and I kinda laughed." — Edward J. Ryan (CEO)
How external parties access the AI agent layer
Q (Robert Young · Canaccord Genuity): The analyst asked how external parties would access the AI agent layer — via third-party models/protocols or custom access for large customers — and about monetization and adoption strategies.
A: Management said access will be via protocols that let customers call their AI tools to quickly disperse data into applications or customer interfaces, with policies and audits controlling access. They described a pay-per-service monetization view (many small services at small fees) and said AI will help customers charge more for better shipment information, which grows both Descartes’ and customers’ revenue.
"it is it is a set of protocols that you would use to make calls to the to our AI tools to disperse data to you quickly and efficiently." — Edward J. Ryan (CEO)