RXO Rxo, Inc. - 10-K

Item 1A. Risk Factors.

The following are important factors that could affect our financial performance and could cause actual results for future periods to differ materially from our anticipated results or other expectations, including those expressed in any forward-looking statements made in this Annual Report or our other filings with the SEC or in oral presentations such as telephone conferences and webcasts open to the public. You should carefully consider the following factors in conjunction with “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Part II, Item 7 and our Consolidated Financial Statements and related Notes in Part II, Item 8.

Risks Related to Our Business

Risks Related to Industry Dynamics

We operate in a highly competitive industry and, if we are unable to adequately address factors that may adversely affect our revenue and costs, our business could suffer.

Competition in the transportation services industry is intense. Increased competition may lead to a reduction in revenues, reduced profit margins, or a loss of market share, any one of which could harm our business. There are many factors that could impair our profitability, including the following: (i) competition from other transportation services companies, some of which offer different services or have a broader coverage network, more fully developed information technology systems and greater capital resources than we do; (ii) a reduction in the rates charged by our competitors to gain business, especially during times of declining economic growth, which may limit our ability to maintain or increase our rates, maintain our operating margins or achieve significant growth in our business; (iii) shippers soliciting bids from multiple carriers for their shipping needs, which may result in the depression of freight rates or loss of business to competitors; (iv) the establishment by our competitors of cooperative relationships to increase their ability to address shipper needs; (v) decisions by our current or prospective customers to develop or expand internal capabilities for some of the services we provide; (vi) the development of new technologies or business models that could result in our disintermediation in certain services we provide; and (vii) competition from other transportation services companies and technology companies that are aggressively pursuing strategies and business models to digitize their services and expand their digital service offerings, including through the development and implementation of new technology that provides a significant competitive advantage.

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Economic recessions and other factors that reduce economic activity could have a material adverse impact on our business.

The transportation industry in North America historically has experienced cyclical fluctuations in financial results due to economic recessions, downturns in the business cycles of our customers, increases in the prices charged by third-party carriers, interest rate fluctuations, prolonged periods of inflation, political instability, pandemics, geopolitical conflict and war, changes in international trade policies and other U.S. and global economic factors beyond our control. During economic downturns, a reduction in overall demand for transportation services will likely reduce demand for our services and exert downward pressures on our rates and margins. The pricing environment also generally becomes more competitive during economic downturns, which may, as it has in the past, affect our ability to obtain price increases from customers both during and following such periods, especially during periods of increased economic inflation. In addition, in periods of strong economic growth, overall demand may exceed the available supply of transportation resources, resulting in increased network congestion and operating inefficiencies. Changes in international trade policies could significantly reduce the volume of goods transported globally and adversely affect our business and results of operations. These factors subject our business to various risks that may have a material impact on our operating results and future prospects. These risks may include the following:

• A reduction in overall freight volume reduces our opportunities for growth. In addition, if a downturn in our customers’ business causes a reduction in the volume of freight shipped by those customers, our operating results could be adversely affected;

• Some of our customers may experience financial distress, file for bankruptcy protection, go out of business, or suffer disruptions in their business and may be unable to pay us. In addition, some customers may not pay us as quickly as they have in the past, causing our working capital needs to increase;

• A significant number of our carriers may go out of business or may be unable to secure sufficient equipment capacity or services to enable us to meet our commitments to our customers;

• We may not be able to adjust appropriately our expenses to rapid changes in market demand. In order to maintain high variability in our business model, it is necessary to adjust staffing levels when market demand changes. In periods of rapid change, it is more difficult to match our staffing levels to our business needs. In addition, we have other expenses that are primarily variable but are fixed for a period of time, as well as certain significant fixed expenses;

• Prolonged, escalated or expanded current and future international conflicts, and potential sanctions imposed in response to these conflicts, may adversely impact global supply chain activities and the economy at large; and

• The U.S. government has made significant changes in U.S. trade policy and has taken certain actions that have negatively impacted U.S. trade, including imposing tariffs on certain goods imported into the United States. To date, several governments, including the European Union and China have imposed tariffs on certain goods imported from the United States. These actions may contribute to weakness in the global economy that could adversely affect our results of operations. Any further changes in U.S. or international trade policy could trigger additional retaliatory actions by affected countries, resulting in “trade wars” and further increased costs for goods transported globally, which may reduce customer demand for these products if the parties having to pay those tariffs increase their prices, or in trading partners limiting their trade with countries that impose anti-trade measures.

Any of these factors could have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations or financial condition, as well as on the price of our common stock.

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Volatility in fuel prices impacts our fuel surcharge revenue and may impact our profitability.

We are subject to risks associated with the availability and price of fuel, all of which are subject to political, economic and market factors that are outside of our control.

Fuel expense constitutes one of the greatest costs to the independent contractor drivers and third-party carriers who transport freight arranged by our operations. Accordingly, we may be adversely affected by the timing and degree of fuel price fluctuations. As is customary in our industry, most of our customer contracts include fuel surcharge programs or other cost-recovery mechanisms to mitigate the effect of any fuel price increases over base amounts established in the contract. However, these mechanisms may not fully capture an increase in fuel price. Furthermore, market pressures may limit our ability to assess fuel surcharges in the future. The extent to which we are able to recover increases in fuel costs may be impacted by the amount of empty or out-of-route truck miles or engine idling time.

Decreases in fuel prices reduce the cost of transportation services and, accordingly, will reduce our revenues and may reduce margins. Significant changes in the price or availability of fuel in future periods, or significant changes in our ability to mitigate fuel price increases through the use of fuel surcharges, could have a material adverse impact on our operations, fleet capacity and ability to generate both revenues and profits.

Higher carrier prices may result in decreased income from operations and increases in working capital usage.

Motor carriers can be expected to charge higher prices if market conditions warrant or to cover higher operating expenses. Our income from operations may decrease if we are unable to increase our pricing to our customers. Increased demand for over-the-road transportation services, changes in regulations and increased enforcement of existing regulations may reduce available capacity and increase motor carrier pricing. In some instances where we have entered into contract freight rates with customers, in the event market conditions change and those contracted rates are below market rates, we may be required to provide transportation services at a loss or lower margin. This may be more acute when we have a high percentage of contracted freight with customers and when there are significant changes in prices charged by motor carriers in a short period, as most of our transportation services are procured transactionally. To date, such losses have not been material, but there can be no assurances that such losses will not be material in the future.

As our volumes increase or we increase freight rates charged to our customers, the resulting increase in revenues may increase our working capital needs due to our business model, which generally has a higher length of days sales outstanding than days payables outstanding.

Extreme or unusual weather conditions can disrupt our operations, impact freight volumes, and increase our costs, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our business results.

Our business depends, in part, on predictable temperate weather patterns. Certain seasonal weather conditions and isolated weather events can disrupt our operations. At least some of our operations are constantly at risk of extreme adverse weather conditions. Any unusual or prolonged adverse weather patterns in our areas of operations or markets, whether due to climate change or otherwise, can temporarily impact freight volumes and increase our costs.

Our operations may be subject to seasonal fluctuations, and our inability to manage these fluctuations could negatively affect our business and our results of operations.

Many of our customers typically realize a significant portion of their sales in the fourth quarter of each year during the holiday season. Although not all of our customers experience the same seasonal variation, and some customers may have seasonal peaks that occur in periods other than the fourth quarter, the seasonality of our customers’ businesses places higher demands on our services, requiring us to take measures, including temporarily expanding our workforce, to meet our customers’ demands. Our failure to meet our customers’ expectations during these seasonal peaks may negatively affect our customer relationships, could expose us to penalties under our contractual arrangements with customers and ultimately could negatively affect our business and our results of operations.

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Risks Related to Third-Party Relationships

We depend on third parties in the operation of our business.

We generally do not own or control the transportation assets that deliver our customers’ freight, and we do not employ the people directly involved in delivering this freight. In addition, we engage third-party contractors who own and operate their own equipment and vendors to provide value-added services. Accordingly, we are dependent on third parties to provide truck, rail, ocean, air and other transportation and related services and to report certain events to us, including delivery information and cargo claims. This reliance on third parties could cause delays in reporting certain events, impacting our ability to recognize revenue and claims in a timely manner.

Our inability to maintain positive relationships with independent carriers could significantly limit our ability to serve our customers on competitive terms. In addition, changes in the terms of the relationships with our vendors may make our value-added services less compelling to customers and adversely impact our results. Our ability to secure sufficient equipment or other transportation services to meet our commitments to customers or provide our services on competitive terms is subject to inherent risks, many of which are beyond our control, including equipment and labor shortages in the transportation industry, interruptions or stoppages in transportation services, “Acts of God” or acts of terrorism, changes in regulations impacting transportation, increases in operating expenses for carriers that result in a reduction in available carriers, and changes in transportation rates; and if we are unable to meet our commitments to our customers or provide our services on competitive terms, our operating results could be materially and adversely affected, and our customers could shift their business to our competitors temporarily or permanently.

Our business relies on third-party carriers to conduct its operations, and the status of these parties as independent contractors, rather than employees, is being challenged.

Federal and state legislation as well as tax and other regulatory authorities have sought to assert that independent contractors in the transportation service industry are employees rather than independent contractors. There can be no assurance that interpretations supporting independent contractor status will not change, that other federal or state legislation will not be enacted or that various authorities will not successfully assert a position that re-classifies independent contractors to be employees. If the third-party carriers with which we contract for the performance of delivery services, or their delivery workers, are determined to be our employees, that determination could materially increase our exposure under a variety of federal and state tax, workers’ compensation, unemployment benefits, labor, employment and tort laws, as well as our potential liability for employee benefits and tax withholdings. Any of the above increased costs would adversely affect our business and operating results.

In addition, we are involved in several class action and collective action lawsuits claiming that the third-party carriers with which we contract, or their delivery workers, should be treated as our employees, rather than independent contractors. These lawsuits may seek substantial monetary damages (including claims for unpaid wages, overtime, unreimbursed business expenses, deductions from wages and other items), injunctive relief, or both.

While we believe that our third-party carriers are properly classified as independent contractors rather than as employees, and that their delivery workers are not employees of the Company, adverse final outcomes in these matters could result in changes to their independent contractor status and could, among other things, entitle certain claimants to reimbursement of certain expenses and to the benefit of wage-and-hour laws, and result in employment and withholding taxes, back wages and benefit liability for us. These claims involve potentially significant classes that could involve thousands of claimants and, accordingly, significant potential damages and litigation costs, and could lead others to bring similar claims. Adverse final outcomes in these matters or changes to state or federal laws could cause us to change our business model, which could have a material adverse effect on our business strategies, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

The results of these matters cannot be predicted with certainty and an unfavorable resolution of one or more of these matters could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

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Our business may be materially adversely affected by labor disputes or organizing efforts .

Our business could be adversely affected by strikes and labor negotiations at seaports, labor disputes between railroads and their union employees, or by a work stoppage at one or more railroads or local trucking companies servicing rail or port terminals, including work disruptions involving owner-operators under contract with our local trucking operations. Port shutdowns and similar disruptions to major points in national or international transportation networks could result in terminal embargoes, disrupt equipment and freight flows, depress volumes and revenues, increase costs and have other negative effects on our operations and financial results.

Labor disputes involving our customers could affect our operations. If our customers experience plant slowdowns or closures because they are unable to negotiate labor contracts, our revenue and profitability could be negatively impacted.

We are subject to one collective bargaining agreement that covers fewer than 20 of our employees. We have not experienced any work stoppages due to strikes by unionized workers, but we cannot make assurances that there will not be any work stoppages due to strikes or other job actions in the future. Labor unions may continue to attempt to organize our employees. Further successful unionization by our employees or organizing efforts could lead to business interruptions, work stoppages and the reduction of service levels due to work rules that could have an adverse effect on our customer relationships and our revenues, earnings, financial position and outlook.

Risks Related to Our Use of Technology

Our business will be seriously harmed if we fail to develop, implement, maintain, upgrade, enhance, protect and integrate our information technology systems, including those systems of any businesses that we acquire.

We rely heavily on our information technology systems in managing our business; they are a key component of our customer-facing services and internal growth strategy. In general, we expect our customers to continue to demand more sophisticated, fully integrated technology from their carriers. To keep pace with changing technologies and customer demands, we must correctly address market trends and enhance the features and functionality of our proprietary technology platform in response to these trends. This process of continuous enhancement may lead to significant ongoing software development costs, which will continue to increase if we pursue new acquisitions of companies and their current systems. In addition, we may fail to accurately determine the needs of our customers or trends in the transportation industry, or we may fail to respond appropriately by implementing functionality for our technology platform in a timely or cost-effective manner. Any such failures could result in decreased demand for our services and a corresponding decrease in our revenues.

We must ensure that our information technology systems remain competitive. If our information technology systems are unable to manage high volumes with reliability, accuracy and speed as we grow, or if such systems are not suited to manage the various services we offer, our service levels and operating efficiency could decline. In addition, if we fail to hire and retain qualified personnel to implement, protect and maintain our information technology systems, or if we fail to enhance our systems to meet our customers’ needs, our results of operations could be seriously harmed.

Our technology may not be successful or may not achieve the desired results, and we may require additional training or different personnel to successfully implement this technology. Our technology development process may be subject to cost overruns or delays in obtaining the expected results, which may result in disruptions to our operations.

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We could be affected by cyberattacks or breaches of our information systems, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We may be subject to cybersecurity attacks and other intentional hacking. Any failure to identify and address such defects or errors or prevent a cyber-attack could result in service interruptions, operational difficulties, loss of revenues or market share, liability to our customers or others, the diversion of corporate resources, injury to our reputation or increased service and maintenance costs. Addressing such issues could prove to be impossible or very costly and responding to the resulting claims or liability could similarly involve substantial cost. Also, due to recent advances in technology and well-known efforts on the part of computer hackers and cyber-criminals to breach data security of companies, we face risks associated with potential failure to adequately protect critical corporate, customer and employee data, which, if released, could adversely impact our customer relationships, our reputation, and even violate privacy laws. Recently, regulatory and enforcement focus on data protection has heightened in the United States. Failure to comply with applicable data protection regulations or other data protection standards may expose us to litigation, fines, sanctions or other penalties, which could harm our business, our reputation, results of operations and financial condition.

A failure of our information technology infrastructure, information systems, networks or processes may materially adversely affect our business.

The efficient operation of our business depends on our information technology systems. We rely on our information technology systems to effectively manage our sales and marketing, financial, legal and compliance functions, engineering and product development tasks, research and development data, communications, order entry and fulfillment and other business processes. We also rely on third parties and virtualized infrastructure to operate our information technology systems. Despite significant testing for risk management, external and internal risks, such as malware, insecure coding, “Acts of God,” data leakage and human error pose a direct threat to the stability or effectiveness of our information technology systems and operations. The failure of our information technology systems to perform as we anticipate could adversely affect our business through transaction errors, billing and invoicing errors, internal recordkeeping and reporting errors, processing inefficiencies and loss of sales, receivables collection or customers. Any such failure could result in harm to our reputation and have an ongoing adverse impact on our business, results of operations and financial condition, including after the underlying failures have been remedied. Further, the delay or failure to implement information system upgrades and new systems effectively could disrupt our business, distract management’s focus and attention from our business operations, and increase our implementation and operating costs, any of which could negatively impact our operations and operating results.

Issues related to the intellectual property rights on which our business depends, whether related to our failure to enforce our own rights or infringement claims brought by others, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We use both internally developed and purchased technologies in conducting our business. Whether internally developed or purchased, it is possible that users of these technologies could be claimed to infringe upon or violate the intellectual property rights of third parties. In the event that a claim is made against us by a third-party for the infringement of intellectual property rights, a settlement or adverse judgment against us could result in increased costs to license the technology or a legal prohibition against our using the technology. Thus, our failure to obtain, maintain or enforce our intellectual property rights could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We rely on a combination of intellectual property rights, including patents, copyrights, trademarks, domain names, trade secrets, intellectual property licenses and other contractual rights, to protect our intellectual property and technology. Any of our owned or licensed intellectual property rights could be challenged, invalidated, circumvented, infringed or misappropriated; our trade secrets and other confidential information could be disclosed in an unauthorized manner to third parties; or we may fail to secure the rights to intellectual property developed by our employees, contractors and others. Efforts to enforce our intellectual property rights may be time-consuming and costly, distract management’s attention, divert our resources and ultimately be unsuccessful. Moreover, should we fail to develop and properly manage future intellectual property, this could adversely affect our market positions and business opportunities.

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Third-party security incidents could result in the loss of our or our customers’ data, expose us to liability, harm our reputation, damage our competitiveness and adversely impact our financial results.

We rely on third parties to provide us with a number of operational and technical services. These third parties may have access to our systems, provide hosting services or otherwise possess data about us or our customers, employees or partners. Our ability to monitor such third parties’ security measures is limited. Any security incident involving such third parties could compromise the integrity or availability of, or result in the theft of, our and our customers’ data. Unauthorized access to data and other confidential or proprietary information may be obtained through break-ins, network breaches by unauthorized parties, employee theft or misuse, or other misconduct. If any of the foregoing were to occur or to be perceived to occur, our reputation may suffer, our competitive position may be diminished, we could face lawsuits, regulatory investigation, fines, and potential liability and our financial results could be negatively impacted.

We use, and may continue to expand our use of, machine learning and artificial intelligence (“AI”) technologies to deliver our services and operate our business.

If we fail to successfully integrate AI into our platform and business processes, or if we fail to keep pace with rapidly evolving AI technological developments, including attracting and retaining talented AI developers and programmers and cybersecurity personnel, we may face a competitive disadvantage. At the same time, the use or offering of AI technologies may result in new or expanded risks and liabilities, including enhanced government or regulatory scrutiny, litigation, privacy and compliance issues, ethical concerns, confidentiality, reputational harm, and security risks. It is not possible to predict all of the risks related to the use of AI and changes in laws, rules, directives, and regulations governing the use of AI that may adversely affect our ability to develop and use AI or subject us to legal liability. The cost of complying with laws and regulations governing AI could be significant and would increase our operating expenses, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Further, market demand and acceptance of AI technologies are uncertain, and we may be unsuccessful in efforts to further incorporate AI into our processes.

Risks Related to Our Credit and Liquidity

Challenges in the commercial and credit environment may adversely affect our future access to capital on favorable terms.

Volatility in global financial markets could increase borrowing costs or affect our ability to access the capital markets. Our ability to issue debt or enter into other financing arrangements on acceptable terms could be adversely affected if there is a material decline in the demand for our services or in the financial health of our customers or suppliers or if there are other significantly unfavorable changes in economic conditions.

We incurred debt obligations that could adversely affect our business and profitability and our ability to meet other obligations.

As of December 31, 2025, we had $408 million of outstanding debt and finance leases, consisting primarily of $355 million of our unsecured notes, in addition to $565 million of undrawn commitments under the unsecured, multi-currency revolving credit facility that matures in 2029 (the “Revolver”). On February 5, 2026, we entered into the ABL Facility (as defined below) and, in connection therewith, the Revolver was fully repaid and terminated. Refer to Note 10 — Debt to the consolidated financial statements for additional information. We may also incur additional indebtedness in the future.

Our inability to generate sufficient cash flows to satisfy our debt obligations, or to refinance our indebtedness on commercially reasonable terms or at all, could materially and adversely affect our financial position and results of operations. Further, failure to comply with the covenants under our indebtedness may have a material adverse impact on our operations. If we fail to comply with any of the covenants under our debt and are unable to obtain a waiver or amendment, such failure may result in an event of default under our indebtedness. We may not have sufficient liquidity to repay or refinance our indebtedness if such indebtedness were accelerated upon an event of default.

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Risks Related to Litigation and Regulation

We are subject to claims arising from our transportation operations.

We use the services of thousands of transportation companies in connection with our transportation operations. From time to time, the drivers employed and engaged by the motor carriers we contract with are involved in accidents, which may result in serious personal injuries. The resulting types and/or amounts of damages may be excluded by or exceed the amount of insurance coverage maintained by the third-party carrier. Although these drivers are not our employees and all of these drivers are employees, owner-operators, or independent contractors working for the third-party carriers, from time to time, claims may be asserted against us for their actions or for our actions in retaining them. Claims against us may exceed the amount of our insurance coverage or may not be covered by insurance at all. A material increase in the frequency or severity of accidents, liability claims or workers’ compensation claims, or unfavorable resolutions of claims, could materially and adversely affect our operating results. In addition, significant increases in insurance costs or the inability to purchase insurance as a result of these claims could reduce our profitability. Our involvement in the transportation of certain goods, including but not limited to, hazardous materials, could also increase our exposure in the event one of our third-party carriers is involved in an accident resulting in injuries or contamination.

In North America, as a property freight broker, we are not legally liable for loss or damage to our customers’ cargo. In our customer contracts, we may agree to assume cargo liability up to a stated maximum. We typically do not assume cargo liability to our customers above minimum industry standards in our international freight forwarding, ocean transportation, or air freight businesses on international or domestic air shipments. Although we are not legally liable for loss or damage to our customers’ cargo while operating as a property freight broker, from time to time, claims may be asserted against us for cargo losses.

From time to time, we are involved in lawsuits and are subject to various claims that could result in significant expenditures and impact our operations.

The nature of our business exposes us to the potential for various types of claims and litigation. We are subject to claims and litigation related to independent contractor classification, labor and employment, personal injury, vehicular accidents, cargo and other property damage, commercial disputes, environmental liability and other matters, including with respect to claims asserted under various other theories of agency or employer liability. Claims against us may exceed the amount of insurance coverage that we have or may not be covered by insurance at all. Businesses that we acquire also increase our exposure to litigation. Material increases in liability claims or workers’ compensation claims, or the unfavorable resolution of claims, or our failure to recover, in full or in part, under indemnity provisions could materially and adversely affect our operating results. In addition, significant increases in insurance costs or the inability to purchase insurance as a result of these claims could reduce our profitability.

Our third-party carriers are subject to increasingly stringent laws protecting the environment, including transitional risks relating to climate change, which could directly or indirectly have a material adverse effect on our business.

Future and existing environmental regulatory requirements, including evolving transportation technology, in the United States and abroad could adversely affect operations and increase operating expenses, which in turn could increase our purchased transportation costs or further exacerbate shortages of trucking equipment. If we are unable to retain compliant third-party carriers or pass such operating expenses along to our customers, our business could be materially and adversely affected. Even without any new legislation or regulation, increased public concern regarding greenhouse gases emitted by transportation carriers could harm the reputations of companies operating in the transportation industry and shift consumer demand toward more locally sourced products and away from our services.

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We are subject to governmental regulations and political conditions, which could negatively impact our business.

Our operations are regulated and licensed by various governmental agencies at the local, state and federal levels in the United States and in the foreign countries where we operate. These regulatory agencies have authority and oversight of domestic and international activities. Our subsidiaries must also comply with applicable regulations and requirements of various agencies.

The regulatory landscape in which we operate is constantly evolving and subject to significant change, including as a result of evolving political and social attitudes. Future laws, regulations and regulatory reforms, including without limitation future laws and regulations related to increased minimum wages, the expansion of union organization rights or changes in the classification of employees and independent contractors, may be more stringent and may require changes to our operating practices that influence the demand for our services or require us to incur significant additional costs, which could adversely affect our results of operations to the extent we are unable to obtain a corresponding increase in price from our customers.

Furthermore, political conditions may increase the level of intensity of regulations that impact our business, may require changes to our operating practices, may influence demand for our services, or may require us to incur significant additional costs, any of which could negatively impact our business.

Risks Related to Our Strategy and Operations

We depend on our ability to attract and retain qualified employees and temporary workers.

We depend on our ability to attract and retain qualified talent, including temporary, part-time and full-time team members; sales representatives; brokerage agents; managers; and executive officers. If we are unable to attract and retain such individuals, we may be unable to maintain our current competitive position within the industry, meet our customers’ expectations or successfully expand and grow our business.

In addition to our permanent employees, our ability to meet customer demands and expectations, especially during periods of peak volume, is substantially dependent on our ability to recruit and retain qualified temporary workers. Increased demand for temporary workers, low unemployment or changes in federal or state minimum wage laws may increase the costs of temporary labor, and any such increases in labor costs could adversely affect our business, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition. Moreover, our inability to recruit a qualified temporary workforce may result in our inability to meet our customers’ performance targets.

Failure to successfully implement our cost and revenue initiatives could cause our future financial results to suffer.

We are implementing various cost and revenue initiatives to further increase our profitability, including advanced pricing analytics and revenue management tools, our digital brokerage platform, our shared distribution network, cross-selling to strategic accounts, workforce productivity and further back-office optimization. If we are not able to successfully implement these cost and revenue initiatives, our future financial results may suffer.

We may not successfully manage our growth.

We have grown rapidly and substantially over prior years, including by expanding our internal resources, making acquisitions and entering into new markets, and we intend to continue to focus on rapid growth, including organic growth and potentially additional acquisitions. We may experience difficulties and higher-than-expected expenses in executing this strategy as a result of unfamiliarity with new markets, changes in revenue and business models, entry into new geographic areas and increased pressure on our existing infrastructure and information technology systems.

Our growth will place a significant strain on our management, operational, financial and information technology resources. We will need to continually improve existing procedures and controls, as well as implement new transaction processing, operational and financial systems, and procedures and controls to expand, train and manage our employee base. Our working capital needs will continue to increase as our operations grow. Failure to manage our growth effectively, or obtain necessary working capital, could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition.

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Our inability to successfully manage the costs and operational difficulties of adding new customers or more volume from existing customers may negatively affect our financial condition and operations.

Establishing new customer relationships or adding operational sites for existing customers requires a significant amount of time, operational focus and capital. Although we typically partner with our new customers to ensure that onboarding is smooth and allocate costs appropriately, our inability to integrate new customers or operational sites into our technology systems or recruit additional employees to manage new customer relationships, or higher than anticipated costs to onboard new customers, may negatively affect our financial condition or operations.

We derive a significant portion of our total revenue from our largest customers.

Our top five customers comprised approximately 23% of our consolidated total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2025. Our largest customer comprised approximately 11.4% of our consolidated total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2025. The sudden loss of one or more major customers could materially and adversely affect our operating results.

Damage to our reputation through unfavorable publicity or the actions of our employees or independent contractors could adversely affect our financial condition.

Our success depends on our ability to consistently deliver operational excellence and strong customer service. Our inability to deliver our services and solutions as promised on a consistent basis, or our customers having a negative experience or otherwise becoming dissatisfied, can negatively impact our relationships with new or existing customers and adversely affect our brand and reputation, which could, in turn, adversely affect revenue and earnings growth. Adverse publicity (whether or not justified) relating to activities by our employees, contractors, agents or others with whom we do business, such as customer service mishaps or noncompliance with laws, could tarnish our reputation and reduce the value of our brand. With the increase in the use of social media outlets, adverse publicity can be disseminated quickly and broadly, making it increasingly difficult for us to effectively respond. This unfavorable publicity could also require us to allocate significant resources to rebuild our reputation.

If we determine that our goodwill has become impaired, we may incur impairment charges, which would negatively impact our operating results.

As of December 31, 2025, we had $1.1 billion of goodwill on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. Goodwill represents the excess of cost over the fair value of net assets acquired in business combinations. We assess potential impairment of our goodwill annually, or more frequently if an event or circumstance indicates an impairment loss may have been incurred. Impairment may result from significant changes in the manner or use of the acquired assets, in connection with the sale, spin off or other divestiture of a business unit, negative industry or economic trends and/or significant underperformance relative to historic or projected operating results. For a discussion of our goodwill impairment testing, see “Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates—Evaluation of Goodwill” in “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”

Any acquisitions that we may complete in the future may be unsuccessful or result in other risks or developments that adversely affect our financial condition and results.

While we intend for acquisitions to improve our competitiveness and profitability, we cannot be certain that any future acquisitions will be accretive to earnings or otherwise meet our operational or strategic expectations. Special risks, including accounting, regulatory, compliance, information technology or human resources issues, may arise in connection with, or as a result of, the acquisition of an existing company, including the assumption of unanticipated liabilities and contingencies, difficulties in integrating acquired businesses, possible management distractions, or the inability of the acquired business to achieve the levels of revenue, profit, productivity or synergies we anticipate or otherwise perform as we expect on the timeline contemplated. Any of these events could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

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We may not realize all of the anticipated benefits of any divestitures we may make in the future, or the benefits of any such divestitures may take longer to realize than expected.

We may in the future sell certain businesses or exit particular markets. Any such divestitures may not yield the targeted improvements in our business. Divestitures involve risks, including difficulties in the separation of operations, services, and personnel, disruption in our operations or businesses, finding a suitable purchaser, and the diversion of management’s attention from our other businesses. Any impairments and losses on divestiture resulting from this process may cause us to record significant charges, including those related to goodwill and other intangible assets. Any charges that we are required to record or the failure to achieve the intended financial results associated with divestitures of businesses or assets could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Risks Related to Our Common Stock

Sales of shares of our common stock in connection with registration rights granted to certain stockholders, or the prospect of any such sales, could affect the market price of our common stock and could impair our ability to raise capital through future sales of equity securities.

We have entered into agreements with certain stockholders that granted such stockholders certain registration rights. Pursuant to these agreements, we registered for resale 28.5 million shares of our common stock, which represents approximately 17.4% of our outstanding shares of common stock as of December 31, 2025. Any sales of these registered shares, or the prospect of any such sales, could adversely impact the market price of our common stock and could impair our ability to raise capital through future sales of equity securities.

Any stockholder’s percentage of ownership in RXO may be diluted in the future at any given time.

In the future, existing holders of our common stock may be diluted because of equity issuances for acquisitions, capital market transactions or otherwise, including any equity awards that we will grant to our directors, officers and employees. Our employees have stock-based awards that correspond to shares of our common stock. We anticipate that the compensation committee of our board of directors will grant additional stock-based awards to our employees under the employee benefits plan. Such awards will have a dilutive effect on the number of RXO shares outstanding, and therefore on our earnings per share, which could adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

Certain provisions in RXO’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws, and of Delaware law, may prevent or delay an acquisition of RXO, which could decrease the trading price of our common stock.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws contain, and Delaware law contains, provisions that are intended to deter coercive takeover practices and inadequate takeover bids by making such practices or bids unacceptably expensive to the bidder and to encourage prospective acquirers to negotiate with our board of directors rather than to attempt a hostile takeover. These provisions include:

• the ability of our remaining directors to fill vacancies on our board of directors;

• limitations on stockholders’ ability to call a special stockholder meeting or act by written consent;

• rules regarding how stockholders may present proposals or nominate directors for election at stockholder meetings;

• the right of our board of directors to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval; and

• a classified board of directors, with each class serving a staggered three-year term, which could have the effect of making the replacement of incumbent directors more time consuming and difficult.

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In addition, we are subject to Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”), which could have the effect of delaying or preventing a change of control. Section 203 provides that, subject to limited exceptions, persons that acquire, or are affiliated with persons that acquire, more than 15% of the outstanding voting stock of a Delaware corporation may not engage in a business combination with that corporation, including by merger, consolidation or acquisitions of additional shares, for a three-year period following the date on which that person or any of its affiliates becomes the holder of more than 15% of the corporation’s outstanding voting stock.

We believe these provisions will protect our stockholders from coercive or otherwise unfair takeover tactics by requiring potential acquirers to negotiate with our board of directors and by providing our board of directors with more time to assess any acquisition proposal. These provisions are not intended to make RXO immune from takeovers; however, these provisions will apply even if the offer may be considered beneficial by some stockholders and could delay or prevent an acquisition that our board of directors determines is not in the best interests of RXO and our stockholders. These provisions may also prevent or discourage attempts to remove and replace incumbent directors.

RXO’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation contains an exclusive forum provision that may discourage lawsuits against RXO and our directors and officers.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that unless the board of directors otherwise determines, the state courts within the State of Delaware (or, if no state court located within the State of Delaware has jurisdiction, the federal district court for the District of Delaware) will be the sole and exclusive forum for any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of RXO, any action asserting a claim for or based on a breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any current or former director or officer or other employee or stockholder of RXO in such capacity to RXO or to RXO stockholders, including a claim alleging the aiding and abetting of such a breach of fiduciary duty, any action asserting a claim against RXO or any current or former director or officer or other employee or stockholder of RXO in such capacity arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or amended and restated bylaws, any action asserting a claim relating to or involving RXO governed by the internal affairs doctrine, or any action asserting an “internal corporate claim” as that term is defined in Section 115 of the DGCL.

Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. Accordingly, both state and federal courts have jurisdiction to entertain such claims. To prevent having to litigate claims in multiple jurisdictions and the threat of inconsistent or contrary rulings by different courts, among other considerations, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the federal district courts of the United States will be the exclusive forum for resolving any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty of liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder, and as a result, the exclusive forum provision does not apply to actions arising under the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. While the Delaware Supreme Court ruled in March 2020 that federal forum selection provisions purporting to require claims under the Securities Act be brought in federal court are “facially valid” under Delaware law, there is uncertainty as to whether other courts will enforce our federal forum provision described above. Our stockholders will not be deemed to have waived compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

This exclusive forum provision may limit the ability of our stockholders to bring a claim in a judicial forum that such stockholders find favorable for disputes with RXO or our directors or officers, which may discourage such lawsuits against RXO and our directors and officers. Alternatively, if a court were to find this exclusive forum provision inapplicable to, or unenforceable in respect of, one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings described above, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could negatively affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

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Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report. This Annual Report contains certain forward-looking statements that are intended to be covered by the safe harbors created by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Please see “Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factors” for a discussion of the uncertainties, risks and assumptions associated with these statements.

This section of this Annual Report generally discusses 2025 and 2024 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2025 and 2024. Discussions of 2023 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2024 and 2023 are not included in this Annual Report and can be found in Part II, Item 7, “ Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations ” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024.

Overview

RXO, Inc. is a brokered transportation platform defined by cutting-edge technology and an asset-light business model. The largest component is our core truck brokerage business. Our operations also include asset-light managed transportation and last mile services, which complement our truck brokerage business.

Our truck brokerage business has a history of generating robust free cash flow conversion and a high return on invested capital. Shippers create demand for our service, and we place their freight with qualified independent carriers using our technology. We price our service on either a contract or a spot basis.

Notable factors that enable volume growth in our business include our ability to access massive truckload capacity for shippers through our carrier relationships; our proprietary, cutting-edge technology; our strong management expertise; and favorable long-term industry tailwinds.

We provide our customers with highly efficient access to capacity through our digital brokerage technology. This proprietary platform is a major differentiator for our truck brokerage business, and together with our pricing technology, we believe it can unlock incremental profitable growth. Our complementary services for managed transportation and last mile also utilize our digital brokerage technology.

Our managed transportation service provides asset-light solutions for shippers who outsource their freight transportation to gain reliability, visibility and cost savings. The service uses proprietary technology to enhance our revenue synergy, with cross-selling to truck brokerage and last mile. Our managed transportation offering includes bespoke load planning and procurement, complex solutions tailored to specific challenges, performance monitoring, engineering and data analytics, among other services. Our control tower solution leverages the expertise of a dedicated team focused on continuous improvement, and digital, door-to-door visibility into order status and freight in transit. In addition, we offer technology-enabled managed expedite services that automate transportation procurement for time-critical freight moved by road and air charter carriers. We also offer freight forwarding services, including facilitation of ocean and air transportation, customs brokerage and additional domestic services including middle mile.

Our last mile offering is an asset-light service that facilitates consumer deliveries performed by highly qualified third-party contractors. We are the largest provider of outsourced last mile transportation for heavy goods in the U.S., positioned within 125 miles of the vast majority of the U.S. population and serving a customer base of omnichannel and e-commerce retailers and direct-to-consumer manufacturers.

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The Coyote Acquisition

On September 16, 2024, the Company acquired Coyote from UPS and certain subsidiaries of UPS. We acquired Coyote for $ 1.038 billion in cash, subject to certain additional customary adjustments. The purchase price was subsequently increased by $ 10 million for working capital and other post-closing adjustments, which was paid in the first quarter of 2025. Refer to Note 3 — Acquisition to the consolidated financial statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for disclosures regarding the Company’s acquisition of Coyote.

Notable External Conditions

As a leading provider of freight transportation services, our business can be impacted to varying degrees by factors beyond our control. The impact of macroeconomic conditions, including but not limited to, prolonged inflation, higher interest rates and capital costs, exchange rate volatility, increased shipping costs, labor disputes, reduced discretionary consuming spending, increased tariffs and international conflicts, could negatively impact our financial results. We continue to monitor the evolving macroeconomic environment and the impact to our business. For further discussion of potential impacts of these macroeconomic effects on our business, refer to Item 1A — Risk Factors .

Impact of Inflation

Economic inflation can have a negative impact on our operating costs, and any economic recession could depress activity levels and adversely affect our results of operations. A prolonged period of inflation could cause interest rates, fuel, wages and other costs to increase, which would adversely affect our results of operations unless our pricing to our customers correspondingly increases. Generally, inflationary increases in labor and operating costs related to our operations have historically been offset through price increases. However, the pricing environment generally becomes more competitive during economic downturns, which may, as it has in the past, affect our ability to obtain price increases from customers both during and following such periods.

Basis of Presentation

Cost of transportation and services (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) primarily includes the cost of providing or procuring freight transportation for RXO customers.

Direct operating expenses (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) includes both fixed and variable expenses and consists mainly of personnel costs; facility and equipment expenses, such as rent, utilities, equipment maintenance and repair; costs of materials and supplies; information technology expenses; and gains and losses on sales of property and equipment.

Sales, general and administrative expense (“SG&A”) primarily consists of salaries and commissions for the sales function; salary and benefit costs for executive and certain administration functions; third-party professional fees; facility costs; bad debt expense; and legal costs.

The Company’s consolidated financial statements include the accounts of RXO, Inc. and its majority-owned subsidiaries. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.

RXO has one reportable segment.

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Results of Operations

Years Ended December 31,

Percent of Revenue

(Dollars in millions)

Revenue

Cost of transportation and services (exclusive of depreciation and amortization)

Direct operating expense (exclusive of depreciation and amortization)

Sales, general and administrative expense

Depreciation and amortization expense

Transaction and integration costs

Restructuring costs

Goodwill impairment

Operating income (loss)

Other expense

Interest expense, net

Income (loss) before income taxes

Income tax provision (benefit)

Net income (loss)

Year Ended December 31, 2025 Compared with Year Ended December 31, 2024

Revenue increased by 26.2% to $5.7 billion in 2025, compared with $4.6 billion in 2024. The year-over-year increase in revenue in 2025 was driven by (i) a $1.2 billion increase in truck brokerage revenue, primarily as a result of the Coyote acquisition and (ii) a $141 million increase in last mile revenue, primarily as a result of a 13% increase in volume. This was partially offset by a $51 million decrease in revenue in our managed transportation business, driven primarily by a decrease in automotive expedite volume.

Cost of transportation and services (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) in 2025 was $4.6 billion, or 80.3% of revenue, compared with $3.6 billion, or 78.4% of revenue in 2024. The $1.0 billion increase is primarily attributable to a full year of Coyote activity in 2025. The year-over-year increase as a percentage of revenue during 2025 was driven primarily by (i) a 0.5 percentage point increase in truck brokerage cost of transportation and services as a percentage of revenue as the market tightened during 2025, with capacity rapidly exiting in certain regions driven primarily by regulatory changes and enforcement, which caused buy rates to increase faster than our contractual sell rates and (ii) a 2.7 percentage point increase in last mile cost of transportation and services as a percentage of revenue as a result of freight mix changes.

Direct operating expense (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) of $190 million in 2025 decreased $12 million, or 5.9%, from $202 million in 2024. As a percentage of revenue, direct operating expense (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) decreased to 3.3% in 2025 compared to 4.4% in 2024 driven primarily by cost reduction initiatives and improved leverage as a result of increased scale due to the Coyote acquisition.

SG&A of $832 million in 2025 increased $166 million, or 24.9%, from $666 million in 2024, primarily attributable to a full year of Coyote activity in 2025. As a percentage of revenue, SG&A decreased to 14.5% in 2025 compared with 14.6% in 2024 driven primarily by improved leverage as a result of increased scale due to the Coyote acquisition, as well as cost savings from restructuring actions.

Depreciation and amortization expense in 2025 was $116 million, compared with $87 million in 2024. Depreciation and amortization expense for 2025 included an increase of $28 million attributable to a full year of Coyote activity in 2025.

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Transaction and integration costs in 2025 were $22 million, compared with $53 million in 2024. Transaction and integration costs for 2025 and 2024 included $19 million and $49 million, respectively, attributable to the Coyote acquisition.

Restructuring costs in 2025 and 2024 were $38 million and $33 million, respectively, and primarily comprised severance costs and operating lease impairments.

Goodwill impairment in 2025 was $12 million and was driven by the impairment of our ground and air express reporting unit resulting from our annual goodwill assessment.

Other expense in 2024 included a one-time charge of $216 million representing a deemed non-pro rata distribution in connection with the private placement common stock issuance completed in August 2024.

Our effective income tax rates were 13.3% and 4.6% for 2025 and 2024, respectively. Our effective tax rate for 2025 differs from the U.S. corporate income tax rate of 21% primarily due to the effect of non-deductible expenses when experiencing a pre-tax loss. Our effective tax rate for 2024 differs from the U.S. corporate income tax rate of 21% primarily due to the effect of large non-deductible tax items associated with the Coyote acquisition and related common stock issuances.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Overview

Our ability to fund our operations and anticipated capital needs are reliant upon the generation of cash from operations, supplemented as necessary by utilization of our revolving credit facility. Our principal uses of cash in the future will be primarily to fund our operations, working capital needs, capital expenditures, repayment of borrowings, share repurchases and strategic business development transactions. The timing and magnitude of our growth and working capital needs can vary and may positively or negatively impact our cash flows.

We continually evaluate our liquidity requirements and capital structure in light of our operating needs, growth initiatives and capital resources. We believe that our existing liquidity and sources of capital are sufficient to support our operations over the next 12 months and thereafter, for the foreseeable future.

Capital Expenditures

Our 2025 capital expenditures include capital associated with strategic investments in technology, equipment and real estate. The level and the timing of the Company’s capital expenditures within these categories can vary as a result of a variety of factors outside of our control, such as the timing of new contracts and availability of labor and equipment. We believe that we have significant discretion over the amount and timing of our capital expenditures as we are not subject to any agreement that would require significant capital expenditures on a designated schedule or upon the occurrence of designated events.

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Debt and Financing Arrangements

Notes

On October 25, 2022, we completed an offering of $355 million in aggregate principal amount of unsecured notes (the “Notes” or the “7.50% Notes due 2027”). The Notes bear interest at a rate of 7.50% per annum payable semiannually in cash in arrears on May 15 and November 15 of each year, beginning May 15, 2023, and mature on November 15, 2027, unless earlier repurchased or redeemed. RXO is permitted to redeem some or all of the Notes prior to their maturity at redemption prices described in the indenture governing the Notes. The Notes were issued at a price of 98.962% of par. Refer to Note 10 — Debt to the consolidated financial statements for additional information.

Revolving Credit Facilities

On October 18, 2022, we entered into a five-year, $500 million unsecured, multi-currency revolving credit facility (the “Revolver”) with $50 million available for the issuance of letters of credit. Loans under the Revolver bear interest at a fluctuating rate plus an applicable margin based on the Company's credit ratings. There was $35 million outstanding under the Revolver as of December 31, 2025.

On November 2, 2023, the Company exercised a feature to increase the total commitments under its Revolver from $500 million to $600 million.

The Revolver requires the Company to maintain a minimum interest coverage ratio of not less than 3.00:1.00. On August 8, 2024, the Company and lenders entered into an amendment, which, following the completion of the Coyote acquisition on September 16, 2024, increased the Company’s maximum consolidated leverage ratio to not greater than 4.50:1.00. This amendment also extended the Revolver maturity date to September 16, 2029, subject to a springing earlier maturity date based on outstanding borrowings under the Company’s existing notes. Refer to Note 10 — Debt to the consolidated financial statements for additional information.

As of December 31, 2025, the Company had $565 million committed under the Revolver, net of outstanding borrowings. As of December 31, 2025, the Company's available borrowing capacity under the Revolver, after giving effect to the financial covenants described above, was $202 million.

In connection with entering into the ABL Facility, on February 5, 2026, the existing Revolver was fully repaid and terminated.

We also have a non-U.S. revolving credit facility with a maximum commitment of approximately $17 million. This facility has a one-year term and we had $15 million outstanding as of December 31, 2025 classified as short-term debt.

ABL Facility

On February 5, 2026, we entered into an asset-based five-year revolving credit facility (the “ABL Facility”) in an amount of up to $450 million, with $100 million available for the issuance of letters of credit. Proceeds from loans under the ABL Facility were used to repay and terminate the existing Revolver. Loans under the ABL Facility bear interest at a rate per annum equal to, at the Company’s election: (i) a base rate plus an applicable margin or (ii) an adjusted term Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) plus an applicable margin; interest is payable quarterly. The Company is required to pay a commitment fee on any unused commitment, based on pricing levels set forth in the agreement.

The ABL Facility contains customary representations and warranties, events of default and financial, affirmative and negative covenants for facilities of this type, including, but not limited to, financial covenants relating to a fixed charge coverage ratio, a minimum liquidity requirement and a minimum excess availability requirement, and restrictions on indebtedness, liens, investments and acquisitions, asset dispositions, specified agreements, restricted payments and prepayment of certain indebtedness.

Refer to Note 10 — Debt to the consolidated financial statements for additional information.

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Loan Covenants and Compliance

As of December 31, 2025, we were in compliance with the covenants and other provisions of our debt agreements. Any failure to comply with any material provision or covenant of these agreements could have a material adverse effect on our liquidity and operations.

Equity Offering

During 2024, the Company completed both a private placement and public offering of its common stock. Total proceeds from these offerings, net of related issuance costs, of approximately $1.1 billion were used to fund the acquisition of Coyote on September 16, 2024. Refer to Note 13 — Stockholders' Equity to the consolidated financial statements for additional information.

Financial Condition

Our asset and liability balances are summarized as follows:

December 31,

(In millions)

$ Change

% Change

Total current assets

Total long-term assets

Total current liabilities

Total long-term liabilities

Total assets decreased by $137 million from December 31, 2024 to December 31, 2025, primarily due to (i) an $18 million decrease in cash and cash equivalents, as described in the Cash Flow Activity section below, (ii) a $46 million decrease in identifiable intangible assets as a result of amortization and (iii) a $38 million decrease in operating lease assets primarily as a result of amortization. Total liabilities decreased by $66 million from December 31, 2024 to December 31, 2025, primarily due to (i) a $30 million decrease in short-term and long-term operating lease liabilities as a result of lease payments and (ii) a $37 million decrease in deferred tax liabilities. These decreases were partially offset by a $36 million increase in long-term debt and obligations under finance leases.

Cash Flow Activity

Our cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities are summarized as follows:

Years Ended December 31,

(In millions)

$ Change

Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities

Net cash used in investing activities

Net cash provided by financing activities

Effect of exchange rates on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash

Net increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash

Net cash provided by operating activities in 2025 was $51 million compared with $12 million used in 2024. The increase in net cash provided by operating activities was primarily due to higher income and changes in working capital.

Net cash used in investing activities in 2025 was $71 million compared with $1.1 billion used in 2024. The primary uses of cash in 2025 were (i) $59 million for purchases of property and equipment and (ii) $10 million paid related to the Coyote acquisition for working capital and post-closing adjustments. The primary uses of cash in 2024 were (i) $1.0 billion for the acquisition of Coyote, net of cash acquired, and (ii) $45 million for purchases of property and equipment.

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Net cash provided by financing activities in 2025 was $1 million compared with $1.1 billion in 2024. The primary source of cash in 2025 was $33 million in net proceeds from borrowings on revolving credit facilities, partially offset by $19 million in payments for tax withholdings primarily attributable to the vesting of stock compensation awards held by non-RXO employees at the spin which are now substantially complete. The primary source of cash from financing activities in 2024 was $1.1 billion in net proceeds from the issuance of common stock.

Contractual Obligations

We lease certain facilities and equipment under non-cancellable operating and finance lease arrangements. As of December 31, 2025, our outstanding discounted obligations under operating and finance leases were $266 million and $3 million, respectively. See Note 8 — Leases to the consolidated financial statements for additional information.

As of December 31, 2025, we had $355 million of the Notes outstanding with interest payable semiannually in cash in arrears on May 15 and November 15 of each year, beginning May 15, 2023. The Notes mature on November 15, 2027, unless earlier repurchased or redeemed, if applicable.

As of December 31, 2025, we had $35 million outstanding under the Revolver. Interest on any outstanding borrowings is payable monthly or quarterly, depending on RXO’s upfront election. Borrowings under the Revolver are payable, at our option, at any time prior to or at maturity on September 16, 2029. We also have a non-U.S. revolving credit facility with a maximum commitment of approximately $17 million. This facility has a one-year term and we had $15 million outstanding as of December 31, 2025 classified as short-term debt. See Note 10 — Debt to the consolidated financial statements for additional information.

In connection with entering into the ABL Facility, on February 5, 2026, the existing Revolver was fully repaid and terminated.

In addition, we have obligations for agreements to purchase goods or services entered into in the ordinary course of business that are enforceable and legally binding.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

We prepare our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”). A summary of our significant accounting policies is contained in Note 2 — Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies to our consolidated financial statements. The methods, assumptions, and estimates that we use in applying our accounting policies may require us to apply judgments regarding matters that are inherently uncertain and may change based on changing circumstances or changes in our analysis. Material changes in these assumptions, estimates and/or judgments have the potential to materially alter our results of operations. We have identified below our accounting policies that we believe could potentially produce materially different results if we were to change underlying assumptions, estimates and/or judgments. Although actual results may differ from estimated results, we believe the estimates are reasonable and appropriate.

Business Combinations

We apply the acquisition method of accounting with respect to the identifiable assets and liabilities of a business combination and record the assets acquired and liabilities assumed at their estimated fair values as of the acquisition date. The excess of the cost of the acquired business and the fair value of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed is recognized as goodwill. During the measurement period, which is up to one year from the acquisition date, we may adjust provisional amounts that were recognized at the acquisition date to reflect new information obtained about facts and circumstances that existed as of the acquisition date.

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Determining the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed requires our management to make significant estimates and assumptions for intangible assets, contract obligations assumed, and pre-acquisition contingencies, where applicable. Although we believe the assumptions and estimates we have made in the past are reasonable and appropriate, they are based, in part, on historical experience and information obtained from the management of the acquired companies and are inherently uncertain. The assistance of an independent third-party valuation firm was used to determine the estimated fair values and useful lives of finite-lived intangible assets including customer relationships and trademarks. Valuation methods used were based on income-based approaches including the excess earnings method and relief-from-royalty method for customer relationships and trademarks, respectively. Critical estimates and assumptions used in valuing certain acquired intangible assets include projected revenues, projected expenses, customer retention rate, contributory asset charges, and discount rate for the customer relationships; and projected revenues, trademark phase-out projection, trademark royalty rate, and discount rate for the trademarks. Unanticipated events and circumstances may occur which could affect the accuracy or validity of such assumptions, estimates or actual results.

Evaluation of Goodwill

We measure goodwill as the excess of consideration transferred over the fair value of net assets acquired in business combinations. We allocate goodwill to our reporting units for the purpose of impairment testing. We evaluate goodwill for impairment annually, or more frequently if an event or circumstance indicates an impairment loss may have been incurred. We measure goodwill impairment, if any, at the amount a reporting unit’s carrying amount exceeds its fair value, not to exceed the carrying amount of goodwill. Our reporting units are our operating segments or one level below our operating segments for which discrete financial information is prepared and regularly reviewed by segment management. We have six reporting units. Application of the goodwill impairment test requires judgment, including the identification of the reporting units, the assignment of assets and liabilities to the reporting units, the assignment of goodwill to the reporting units, and a determination of the fair value of the reporting units.

For our 2025 goodwill assessment, we performed a quantitative analysis for our reporting units using a combination of the income and market approaches. As of November 30, 2025, we completed our annual impairment tests for goodwill. During 2025, our ground and air express reporting unit experienced lower than anticipated operating results and changing market fundamentals, resulting in the decision to restructure the reporting unit. Based on the quantitative assessment performed in 2025, we recognized an impairment loss of $12 million to fully impair the goodwill of our ground and air express reporting unit as the discounted cash flows expected to be generated by the reporting unit were not sufficient to recover its carrying value. No impairments resulted for our remaining reporting units as their assessed fair values exceeded their carrying values.

As of November 30, 2025, our Managed Solutions reporting unit had $116 million in goodwill and the excess of its estimated fair value over carrying value was 9%. Should our estimates change based on Managed Solutions’ operating results, market conditions, long-term growth projections or other assumptions underlying our forecast, including changes to the discount rate, the Managed Solutions reporting unit may become subject to goodwill impairment in future periods.

A quantitative goodwill impairment test, when performed, includes estimating the fair value of a reporting unit using an income approach and/or a market-based approach. The income approach of determining fair value is based on the present value of estimated future cash flows, which requires us to make various assumptions, including assumptions about the timing and amount of future cash flows, growth rates and discount rates. The discount rates reflect management’s judgment and are based on a risk adjusted weighted-average cost of capital utilizing industry market data of businesses similar to the reporting units. Inherent in our preparation of cash flow projections are assumptions and estimates derived from a review of our operating results, business plans, expected growth rates, cost of capital and tax rates. Our forecasts also reflect expectations concerning future economic conditions, interest rates and other market data. The market approach of determining fair value is based on comparable market multiples for companies engaged in similar businesses, as well as recent transactions within our industry. We believe our approach, which utilizes multiple valuation techniques, yields the most appropriate evidence of fair value.

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Many of the factors used in assessing fair value are outside the control of management, and assumptions and estimates may change in future periods. Changes in assumptions or estimates could materially affect the estimate of the fair value of a reporting unit, and therefore could affect the likelihood and amount of any potential impairment.

Insurance

We participate in a combination of self-insurance programs, partially through our wholly-owned captive insurance company, and purchased insurance that are managed to provide for the costs of medical, casualty, liability, vehicular, cargo, workers’ compensation, cyber risk and property claims. Insurance coverage levels are adjusted annually based on risk tolerance and premium expense.

Liabilities for the risks we retain, including estimates of claims incurred but not reported, are not discounted and are estimated, in part, by considering retention levels, historical cost experience, demographic and severity factors, and judgments about current and expected levels of cost per claim. Additionally, claims may emerge in future years for events that occurred in a prior year at a rate that differs from previous actuarial projections. Changes in these assumptions can impact actual costs paid to settle the claims and those amounts may be different than estimates.

New Accounting Standards

Information related to new accounting standards is included in Note 2 — Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies .