Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) Stock Gets Price Target Trim from Wells Fargo & Company

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) had its price target reduced by Wells Fargo & Company from $81.00 to $79.00 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the transportation company’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on KNX. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $84.00 target price on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation in a report on Thursday. Barclays increased their price target on Knight-Swift Transportation from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Stephens raised Knight-Swift Transportation to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $82.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $82.78.

Knight-Swift Transportation Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of KNX stock opened at $61.23 on Thursday. Knight-Swift Transportation has a 52-week low of $41.24 and a 52-week high of $82.86. The stock has a market cap of $9.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.84, a PEG ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $66.77 and its 200-day moving average is $69.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The transportation company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. Knight-Swift Transportation had a return on equity of 4.71% and a net margin of 1.92%. Knight-Swift Transportation’s quarterly revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.32 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Knight-Swift Transportation will post 2.55 EPS for the current year.

Knight-Swift Transportation Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Knight-Swift Transportation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 307.69%.

Insider Transactions at Knight-Swift Transportation

In other news, CAO Cary Flanagan sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.82, for a total transaction of $254,952.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 5,405 shares in the company, valued at approximately $382,782.10. This trade represents a 39.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Reid Dove sold 126,864 shares of Knight-Swift Transportation stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.13, for a total value of $9,277,564.32. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 224,954 shares of company stock worth $16,183,454. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Knight-Swift Transportation

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of KNX. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 0.7% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,458,088 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $486,995,000 after acquiring an additional 60,750 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Knight-Swift Transportation in the 2nd quarter worth about $173,669,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Knight-Swift Transportation by 24.7% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 842,644 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $48,519,000 after purchasing an additional 166,919 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 38.9% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 595,649 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,297,000 after purchasing an additional 166,668 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 36.1% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 523,801 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $30,160,000 after purchasing an additional 138,949 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.77% of the company’s stock.

Knight-Swift Transportation News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: KNX reported third-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.83, above the approximately $0.75–$0.76 analyst consensus, while revenue of $2.20 billion also exceeded expectations. EPS more than doubled from $0.32 a year earlier, supported by improving truckload pricing and early margin recovery. Knight-Swift Q3 earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Management expects truckload operating income to improve meaningfully in the fourth quarter, and commentary pointed to tighter capacity and better pricing as potential catalysts for further earnings recovery. First look at Knight-Swift’s Q3 results
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts still see substantial upside: Stifel raised its price target to $92 with a buy rating, while Wells Fargo maintained an overweight rating despite lowering its target to $79. A valuation analysis also suggested KNX may be significantly undervalued if the earnings recovery continues. Knight-Swift may be undervalued
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its target from $68 to $74 but kept a neutral rating, indicating that analysts recognize the recovery potential while remaining cautious about execution and industry conditions. JPMorgan analyst action
• Negative Sentiment: Fourth-quarter adjusted EPS guidance of $0.78–$0.84 has a midpoint of $0.81, slightly below the $0.82 consensus estimate. The guidance may be weighing on the stock because it suggests that the recovery will be gradual rather than immediate. Knight-Swift Q4 guidance

About Knight-Swift Transportation

Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc is a transportation and logistics company that provides freight services across North America. The company operates one of the largest truckload fleets in the United States and serves a broad range of industries through its network of company-owned equipment, independent contractors, terminals and distribution facilities.

Its services include dry-van, refrigerated and flatbed truckload transportation; dedicated and expedited delivery; less-than-truckload shipping; freight brokerage; intermodal transportation; cross-border logistics; and warehousing and other supply-chain services.