Gross margins have compressed sharply from a peak of 47.1% in 2024Q3 to just 4.1% in 2026Q1, reflecting the extreme sensitivity of the business to falling spot freight rates.
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 | Dec'17 | Dec'16 | Dec'15 | Dec'14 | Dec'13 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 6.29B | 6.9B | 8.43B | 5.16B | 12.56B | 10.73B | 3.99B | 3.3B | 3.25B | 2.98B | 2.54B | 2.99B | 3.41B | 3.68B |
| Revenue Growth % | -29.06% | -18.07% | 63.25% | -58.9% | 17.08% | 168.78% | 20.97% | 1.6% | 9.05% | 17.29% | -15.11% | -12.25% | -7.43% | - |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 5.61B | 5.75B | 5.66B | 5.36B | 6.16B | 4.69B | 3.15B | 3.06B | 3.11B | 2.71B | 2.5B | 2.69B | 3.17B | 3.55B |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 83.24% | 67.11% | 103.77% | 49.04% | 43.67% | 78.89% | 92.61% | 95.78% | 90.93% | 98.28% | 90.02% | 92.86% | 96.54% |
| Gross Profit | 686.4M | 1.16B | 2.77B | -194.7M | 6.4B | 6.04B | 842.49M | 243.87M | 137.17M | 270.25M | 43.59M | 298.49M | 243.3M | 127.53M |
| Gross Margin % | 10.91% | 16.76% | 32.89% | -3.77% | 50.96% | 56.33% | 21.11% | 7.39% | 4.22% | 9.07% | 1.72% | 9.98% | 7.14% | 3.46% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | -58.25% | 1523.57% | -103.04% | 5.91% | 617.35% | 245.46% | 77.78% | -49.24% | 520.02% | -85.4% | 22.68% | 90.78% | - |
| Operating Expenses | 306.7M | 313.3M | 286.9M | 263.8M | 319.2M | 247.56M | 143.97M | 133.45M | 134.12M | 137.76M | 130.38M | 196.2M | 330.64M | 474.02M |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 4.54% | 3.4% | 5.11% | 2.54% | 2.31% | 3.61% | 4.04% | 4.13% | 4.63% | 5.13% | 6.56% | 9.7% | 12.87% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 332M | 313.3M | 286.9M | 263.8M | 319.2M | 247.56M | 143.97M | 133.45M | 134.12M | 137.76M | 130.38M | 147.44M | 153.04M | 148.6M |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 4.54% | 3.4% | 5.11% | 2.54% | 2.31% | 3.61% | 4.04% | 4.13% | 4.63% | 5.13% | 4.93% | 4.49% | 4.04% |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | -1000K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Operating Income | 379.7M | 844M | 2.48B | -458.5M | 6.08B | 5.8B | 698.51M | 110.42M | 3.06M | 132.49M | -86.8M | 70.77M | -14.6M | -160.42M |
| Operating Margin % | 6.03% | 12.22% | 29.48% | -8.88% | 48.41% | 54.02% | 17.5% | 3.35% | 0.09% | 4.45% | -3.42% | 2.37% | -0.43% | -4.36% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | -66.03% | 641.94% | -107.54% | 4.93% | 729.76% | 532.57% | 3512.17% | -97.69% | 252.65% | -222.65% | 584.62% | 90.9% | - |
| EBITDA | 1.67B | 2.13B | 3.63B | 1.01B | 7.48B | 6.58B | 1.01B | 355.93M | 114.62M | 240.88M | 14.18M | 169.08M | 112.42M | -1.07M |
| EBITDA Margin % | 26.49% | 30.85% | 43.04% | 19.63% | 59.53% | 61.29% | 25.37% | 10.79% | 3.53% | 8.09% | 0.56% | 5.65% | 3.3% | -0.03% |
| EBITDA Growth % | -58.07% | -41.28% | 257.97% | -86.45% | 13.73% | 549.28% | 184.52% | 210.52% | -52.41% | 1599.32% | -91.62% | 50.4% | 10577.26% | - |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 1.29B | 1.29B | 1.14B | 1.47B | 1.4B | 779.22M | 314.19M | 245.51M | 111.57M | 108.39M | 100.97M | 98.31M | 127.02M | 159.34M |
| EBIT | 496.4M | 844M | 2.68B | -2.43B | 6.25B | 5.82B | 687.82M | 141.38M | -10.5M | 120.18M | -52.31M | 70.77M | -14.6M | -160.42M |
| Net Interest Income | -353.6M | -343M | -318.5M | -238.6M | -140.7M | -161.54M | -148.46M | -144.94M | -98.09M | -100.11M | -95.93M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Income | 125.4M | 132.1M | 149.2M | 142.2M | 84.1M | 7.36M | 1.92M | 2.45M | 2.49M | 2.06M | 1.9M | 97.65M | 129.74M | 160.89M |
| Interest Expense | 479M | 475.1M | 467.7M | 380.8M | 224.8M | 168.9M | 150.37M | 147.38M | 100.58M | 102.17M | 97.82M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Income/Expense | -199.9M | -185.5M | -279.8M | -2.36B | -54.3M | -136.48M | -157.72M | -111.7M | -108.78M | -106.9M | -58.34M | -93.38M | 46.3M | -316.77M |
| Pretax Income | 179.8M | 658.5M | 2.21B | -2.82B | 6.03B | 5.66B | 540.79M | -1.28M | -105.72M | 25.6M | -145.13M | 4.64M | -217.08M | -507.38M |
| Pretax Margin % | 2.86% | 9.54% | 26.16% | -54.54% | 47.98% | 52.75% | 13.55% | -0.04% | -3.26% | 0.86% | -5.72% | 0.16% | -6.37% | -13.78% |
| Income Tax | 80.7M | 177M | 51.2M | -127.6M | 1.4B | 1.01B | 16.6M | 11.77M | 14.13M | 14.23M | 18.37M | -1.89M | -18.93M | 22.86M |
| Effective Tax Rate % | 44.88% | 26.88% | 2.32% | 4.53% | 23.2% | 17.85% | 3.07% | -920.66% | -13.37% | 55.61% | -12.65% | -40.77% | 8.72% | -4.51% |
| Net Income | 97.9M | 479.2M | 2.15B | -2.7B | 4.62B | 4.64B | 517.96M | -18.15M | -125.65M | 6.24M | -168.29M | 2.25M | -204.91M | -534.97M |
| Net Margin % | 1.56% | 6.94% | 25.48% | -52.22% | 36.77% | 43.25% | 12.98% | -0.55% | -3.87% | 0.21% | -6.63% | 0.08% | -6.01% | -14.53% |
| Net Income Growth % | -95.84% | -77.69% | 179.67% | -158.35% | -0.45% | 795.88% | 2953.94% | 85.56% | -2115.28% | 103.7% | -7569.6% | 101.1% | 61.7% | - |
| Net Income (Continuing) | 99.1M | 481.5M | 2.15B | -2.69B | 4.63B | 4.65B | 524.19M | -13.04M | -119.85M | 11.36M | -163.5M | 6.54M | -198.14M | -530.25M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 3.9M | 4.7M | 5.8M | 3.3M | 6.3M | 7.52M | 7.19M | 5.4M | 6.28M | 6.51M | 3.13M | 3.98M | 7.12M | 4.41M |
| EPS (Diluted) | 0.81 | 3.98 | 17.82 | -22.42 | 38.35 | 39.02 | 4.31 | -0.11 | -1.20 | 0.06 | -1.68 | 0.02 | -2.05 | -0.54 |
| EPS Growth % | -95.8% | -77.67% | 179.48% | -158.46% | -1.72% | 805.34% | 4018.18% | 90.83% | -2023.08% | 103.71% | -7566.67% | 101.1% | -279.63% | - |
| EPS (Basic) | - | 3.98 | 17.84 | -22.42 | 38.49 | 40.31 | 4.31 | -0.11 | -1.26 | 0.06 | -1.68 | 0.02 | -2.05 | -0.54 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 120.48M | 120.52M | 120.49M | 120.21M | 120.44M | 118.93M | 120.13M | 117.5M | 104.31M | 100M | 100M | 100M | 100M | 999.79M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 120.48M | 120.45M | 120.36M | 120.21M | 120.01M | 115.11M | 120.13M | 117.5M | 100M | 100M | 100M | 100M | 100M | 999.79M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | 107.6% | 26.97% | - | 71.51% | 11.56% | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Spot rate volatility exposure
As reported in recent financial statements, ZIM's revenue has experienced a sharp decline, with the most recent quarterly figures showing a 30.4% year-over-year contraction, signaling that the post-pandemic freight rate surge has fully dissipated and left the company facing a challenging demand environment.
The consistent deceleration in top-line growth over the last four quarters suggests that ZIM is struggling to maintain volume in a softening global trade environment. Investors should monitor whether this trend represents a permanent reset to pre-pandemic levels or if the company's niche-route strategy can eventually stabilize the revenue base.
Based on ZIM's reported figures, gross margins have compressed significantly from a peak of 47.1% in 2024Q3 to a mere 4.1% in 2026Q1, illustrating the extreme sensitivity of the company's asset-light chartering model to falling spot market freight rates.
The rapid erosion of gross margins suggests that the company's fixed charter hire obligations are not adjusting as quickly as the revenue generated from spot-market cargo. This mismatch appears to create a structural floor for costs that severely limits profitability during cyclical downturns.
According to recent SEC filings, ZIM's operating income has swung from a substantial $1.2 billion profit in 2024Q3 to a $13.7 million loss in 2026Q1, demonstrating that the company's cost structure lacks the flexibility to protect operating margins during periods of sharp revenue decline.
The inability to scale SG&A expenses down in proportion to the revenue drop indicates that the company's operating leverage is currently working against shareholders. This trend warrants further investigation into whether management can successfully renegotiate charter terms to align with the current, lower-revenue reality.
While ZIM is often characterized as an asset-light operator, the company's income statement reveals that fixed charter hire expenses act as a synthetic form of high financial leverage, which may exacerbate losses during the current downcycle as evidenced by the recent net loss of $86 million.
Short-sellers may focus on the fact that these long-term lease commitments are essentially fixed costs that cannot be easily shed, potentially leading to sustained cash burn. The market may be underestimating the duration of this margin pressure if charter rates remain elevated while freight rates continue to normalize.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying ZIM stock.
For fiscal year 2025, ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. (ZIM) reported total revenue of $6.90B. This represents a 87.5% increase compared to $3.68B in 2013.
ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. (ZIM) is profitable, generating $479.2M in net income for the fiscal year ending 2025 with a net profit margin of 6.9%.
ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. (ZIM) reported an operating income of $844.0M, resulting in an operating profit margin of 12.2%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. (ZIM) generated $1.16B in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 16.8%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.