Critical Comparison: J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) & TFI International (NYSE:TFII)

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) and TFI International (NYSE:TFII) are both industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, dividends and valuation.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares J.B. Hunt Transport Services and TFI International”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
J.B. Hunt Transport Services	$12.00 billion	1.79	$598.28 million	$7.06	32.36
TFI International	$7.88 billion	1.20	$310.55 million	$4.07	28.32

J.B. Hunt Transport Services has higher revenue and earnings than TFI International. TFI International is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than J.B. Hunt Transport Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

J.B. Hunt Transport Services pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. TFI International pays an annual dividend of $1.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services pays out 25.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. TFI International pays out 46.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has raised its dividend for 22 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares J.B. Hunt Transport Services and TFI International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
J.B. Hunt Transport Services	5.31%	18.75%	8.46%
TFI International	4.14%	14.87%	5.38%

Risk and Volatility

J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a beta of 1.31, suggesting that its stock price is 31% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, TFI International has a beta of 1.63, suggesting that its stock price is 63% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for J.B. Hunt Transport Services and TFI International, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
J.B. Hunt Transport Services	1	10	14	1	2.58
TFI International	0	5	14	0	2.74

J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has a consensus price target of $277.00, indicating a potential upside of 21.26%. TFI International has a consensus price target of $167.94, indicating a potential upside of 45.69%. Given TFI International’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe TFI International is more favorable than J.B. Hunt Transport Services.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

75.0% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.3% of TFI International shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.5% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of TFI International shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

J.B. Hunt Transport Services beats TFI International on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. provides surface transportation, delivery, and logistic services in the United States. It operates through five segments: Intermodal (JBI), Dedicated Contract Services (DCS), Integrated Capacity Solutions (ICS), Final Mile Services (FMS), and Truckload (JBT). The JBI segment offers intermodal freight solutions. It operates 118,171 pieces of company-owned trailing equipment; owns and maintains its chassis fleet of 100,825 units; and manages a fleet of 5,944 company-owned tractors, 436 independent contractor trucks, and 7,567 company drivers. The DCS segment designs, develops, and executes supply chain solutions that support various transportation networks. As of December 31, 2023, it operated 12,574 company-owned trucks, 674 customer-owned trucks, and 4 contractor trucks. The company also operates 27,194 owned pieces of trailing equipment and 5,406 customer-owned trailers. The ICS segment provides freight brokerage and transportation logistics solutions; flatbed, refrigerated, expedited, and less-than-truckload, as well as dry-van and intermodal solutions; online multimodal marketplace; and logistics management for customers to outsource their transportation functions. The FMS segment offers delivery services through 1,166 company-owned trucks, 225 customer-owned trucks, and 20 independent contractor trucks; and 1,212 owned pieces of trailing equipment and 102 customer-owned trailers. The JBT segment provides dry-van freight services by utilizing tractors and trailers operating over roads and highways through 27 company-owned tractors and 13,561 company-owned trailers. It also transports or arranges for the transportation of freight, such as general merchandise, specialty consumer items, appliances, forest and paper products, food and beverages, building materials, soaps and cosmetics, automotive parts, agricultural products, electronics, and chemicals. The company was incorporated in 1961 and is headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas.

About TFI International

TFI International Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides transportation and logistics services in the United States and Canada. The company operates through Package and Courier, Less-Than-Truckload (LTL), Truckload (TL), and Logistics segments. The Package and Courier segment engages in the pickup, transport, and delivery of items in North America. The LTL segment is involved in the pickup, consolidation, transportation, and delivery of smaller loads. The TL segment offers expedited transportation, flatbed, tank, container, and dedicated services. This segment also carries full loads directly from the customer to the destination using a closed van or specialized equipment. The Logistics segment provides asset-light logistics services, including brokerage, freight forwarding, and transportation management, as well as small package parcel delivery. As of December 31, 2023, it operates 11,455 trucks, 34,599 trailers, and 7,504 independent contractors. The company was formerly known as TransForce Inc. and changed its name to TFI International Inc. in December 2016. TFI International Inc. was founded in 1957 and is headquartered in Saint-Laurent, Canada.