Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The transportation company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.20), FiscalAI reports. Knight-Swift Transportation had a return on equity of 2.88% and a net margin of 0.88%.

Knight-Swift Transportation Price Performance

NYSE KNX traded down $0.89 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $63.97. The stock had a trading volume of 2,688,342 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,226,768. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $58.81 and its 200 day moving average is $53.30. Knight-Swift Transportation has a twelve month low of $37.76 and a twelve month high of $66.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 156.03, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.11.

Knight-Swift Transportation Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. This is an increase from Knight-Swift Transportation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Knight-Swift Transportation’s dividend payout ratio is currently 195.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Knight-Swift Transportation from $49.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings raised Knight-Swift Transportation from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Knight-Swift Transportation from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. UBS Group raised Knight-Swift Transportation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $54.00 to $66.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Citigroup raised Knight-Swift Transportation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.78.

Key Knight-Swift Transportation News

Here are the key news stories impacting Knight-Swift Transportation this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment still leans favorable overall — KNX has a consensus “Moderate Buy” from analysts, supporting longer?term upside if results improve. Analysts Moderate Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Susquehanna raised its price target from $60 to $72 (now a “neutral” rating), signaling analyst belief in upside potential from current levels despite the rating. Susquehanna Raises PT
• Neutral Sentiment: The company issued its Q1 press release and will file an 8?K; management is hosting a conference call to discuss results, which could clarify guidance and operating details. Business Wire Q1 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Pre?earnings coverage and previews (Zacks, Yahoo) highlighted key metrics investors were watching; these previews set expectations that amplify market reaction when results diverge. Zacks Q1 Preview
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 earnings missed materially: EPS $0.09 vs. $0.29 expected; reported net margin and ROE were weak — this miss is the main driver of downward pressure on the stock today. Press Release Slide Deck

Insider Transactions at Knight-Swift Transportation

In other Knight-Swift Transportation news, Chairman Kevin P. Knight sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.00, for a total value of $1,830,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 1,305,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $79,626,167. This trade represents a 2.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Joshua Smith sold 5,770 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.91, for a total value of $351,450.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,214 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $561,224.74. This trade represents a 38.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 42,930 shares of company stock valued at $2,581,186 in the last 90 days. 2.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Knight-Swift Transportation

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 23.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,918,523 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $675,380,000 after acquiring an additional 2,468,293 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,397,338 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $439,016,000 after acquiring an additional 129,651 shares during the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 50.4% in the 4th quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 2,939,212 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $153,662,000 after acquiring an additional 984,422 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 513.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,416,865 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $126,354,000 after acquiring an additional 2,022,996 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 36.5% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,248,258 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $99,440,000 after acquiring an additional 601,108 shares during the last quarter. 88.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Knight-Swift Transportation Company Profile

Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc (NYSE: KNX) is one of North America’s largest asset-based truckload carriers, offering a wide range of transportation and logistics services. The company was formed in 2017 through the merger of Knight Transportation and Swift Transportation, each with decades of experience in long-haul dry van and refrigerated freight. Since the merger, Knight-Swift has pursued a growth strategy that includes fleet expansions, targeted acquisitions, and investments in technology to enhance service reliability and network efficiency.

The company’s core business activities include full truckload operations for dry van, temperature-controlled and flatbed shipments.