Freightways makes A$71m Aussie aquisition in quest to grow across the Ditch

Wednesday, 17 December 2025

Freightways, a bellwether stock, has defied economically lean times to post a growth in revenue and profit - and grow through acquisitions.

NZX-listed express pick-up, processing and delivery services firm Freightways will spend A$71m to buy a Australian express freight firm, helping both companies take a bigger bite out of the pan-Australian market.

Freightways will purchase the business and assets of VT Freight Express Pty Ltd, a private express parcel and palletised delivery company based in Victoria and doing most of its business there. It will fund the purchase through existing and new bank debt facilities.

VTFE was founded in 2010 and operates an “asset light” model, using a contractor fleet and leased facilities, which is similar to many Freightways’ businesses. It operates in all Australian states and generated about $77m in the year to October 2025.

Freightways’ wants to grow its presence in Australia, where it generates about a third of its revenue and profits. The Kiwi firm bought Allied Express, which is Australia's largest, privately-owned courier and express freight company in the business-to-consumer field, in 2022. But it has not operated in the business-to-business space in Australia until now.

Freightways said it expected to build market share organically (growth it earns off other market players) and through further mergers and acquisitions in Australia that will come off the density the purchase of VTFE provides.

VTFE has 87 contractors, 49 staff and over 350 clients ranging from SMEs to large multi-national corporates. Like many of Freightways acquisitions, it will maintain its own leadership and remain focussed on its niche, sharing resources with its new parent company “where it makes sense to do so”.

Big portfolio

Freightways operates a large portfolio of brands across Australia and New Zealand that also share resources at the back-end. Its New Zealand express package operations, for example, share branch networks, air and road linehaul, and IT.

The company retains a slew of different brands to “cater to a range of customer needs and delivery timeframes …it enables us to win a niche with a specialist focus – but also leverage the combined infrastructure across each segment”.

These brands include New Zealand Couriers, its flagship brand, Post Haste, Castle Parcels, NOW Couriers, SUB60, Security Express, Kiwi Express, STUCK, Kiwi Oversize, Freightways Global, and Pass the Parcel.

The company is also invested in a joint venture airline, Parcelair, and has a linehaul partner, Parceline. In New Zealand it also operates DX Mail, Dataprint, TMG, Big Chill and Shed-X and Med-X.

In the 2025 financial year, Freightways saw total revenue increase by 6.6% year-on-year, and net profit gained 12.9%, while the company reduced debt. A bellwether firm, the company made much of increasing market share and maintaining pricing that reflected cost increases despite the economically depressed trading environment.

It paid out $37.5m in dividends in the year.

Freightways shares gained 3.55% after the announcement of the purchase today, to $14.28 apiece.