Topic: Depreciation methodology, peak timing, and normalized trough level
Key points:
Box trucks use dynamic depreciation (faster early, slower later; held 12–15 years); cargo vans/pickups use straight-line (held 12–24 months), with current cargo van depreciation 2–3x the rate of 3 years ago due to resale market.
Box truck depreciation expected to peak "towards the end of this year, beginning of next year" then trend down; cargo van peak hoped for "by the end of this year" then flatten/decline, but dependent on resale market.
Normalized annual depreciation (excluding trailers/U-Box containers) estimated at $700M–$750M, up from pre-COVID ~$600M due to fleet being 20,000+ units larger and trucks costing more.
Mgmt stance: Neutral — management provides specific timing estimates but notes uncertainty in cargo van resale market; Edward Shoen personally thinks pickups/vans peak is "a year away."
Q2 — Steven Ramsey
Topic: Dealer network expansion, storage competition, and home sales linkage
Key points:
Dealer network currently runs ~3 percentage points below historical ~50% of truck/trailer rental revenue; Edward Shoen expects visible results by May–June 2025, citing overfleet situation (lower utilization) as enabling allocation.
New company-owned stores in last 2–3 years nearly all generate more self-storage revenue than truck/trailer rental; storage/U-Box footprint growing faster than U-Move footprint.
Competitor REITs use "massively below" move-in rates vs. move-out rates (30%–50% gaps); U-Haul quotes higher initial rates, sees this as "foolish" but believes it offends customers.
Mgmt stance: Bullish on dealer network opportunity — Edward Shoen sees "substantial opportunity" for increased penetration and believes results will show by June; neutral on storage slug fest, noting differentiation strategy.
Q3 — Andy Liu
Topic: Capital allocation (fleet vs. storage returns), transaction trends, and storage tenant cleanup
Key points:
Return on trucks has "directionally gone down" from historical levels due to current cost/revenue structure; storage previously returned ~10% yield, but management won't adjust long-term strategy based on a few years of cycle.
Transaction volume: Q2 took a "step back" after trending up in Q4 2024–Q1 2025; October showed similar step-back trend; "tough to get the transaction number to turn" over last couple of years.
Storage tenant eviction process is "through" the bulk; now re-renting to paying customers; overall storage revenue is up; fall season is "wrong time" for this maneuver due to lower demand.
Mgmt stance: Neutral — Jason Berg notes fleet returns are down but storage/trucks are a combined offering; Edward Shoen confirms tenant cleanup is complete and expects positive effect by spring.
Q4 — Jeffrey Kauffman
Topic: Tariff impact on vehicle costs and parts
Key points:
U-Haul buys Stellantis vans assembled in Mexico and GM products assembled in Mexico; Ford has higher domestic content advantage; so far, tariff impacts (quoted 20%–25%) have not passed through to U-Haul's net costs.
Tariff effects primarily in new vehicle costs; parts prices (e.g., alternators) are rising but "not showing up yet in the big number"; suppliers have hedged and kept price increases "way below" tariff rates.
Mgmt stance: Neutral — Edward Shoen notes suppliers are "dreading" tariffs but have managed to avoid passing through full impact; Jason Berg confirms he hasn't seen tariff-driven cost increases.
Q5 — James Wilen
Topic: U-Box growth, market share, profitability inflection, and capital allocation (storage sales)
Key points:
U-Box revenue components (shipping income, storage rent, delivery income) all increased on a percentage and gross basis vs. prior year; assets (containers, warehouse, delivery equipment) are not a limitation.
U-Box is gaining market share; goal is to become "market leader"; profitability profile combines U-Move (logistics costs locked down) and U-Store (storage occupancy is a "fraction" of self-storage, offering upside).
On capital allocation: Edward Shoen says "no" to selling off self-storage locations, even in fringe markets, because those locations have decent returns and lower going-in costs; existing footprint is strong in states like Wyoming and North Dakota where REITs are less motivated.
Mgmt stance: Bullish on U-Box — Sam Shoen says "we're gaining market share unquestionably"; Jason Berg notes margin is within "a couple of percentage points" of overall Moving and Storage margin, with further upside from filling storage boxes.