Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) Updates Q1 2026 Earnings Guidance

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) updated its first quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 0.080-0.100 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 0.250. The company issued revenue guidance of -. Knight-Swift Transportation also updated its Q2 2026 guidance to 0.450-0.490 EPS.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on KNX. Evercore raised Knight-Swift Transportation from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, March 27th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup upgraded Knight-Swift Transportation from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $49.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.11.

Knight-Swift Transportation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KNX traded up $2.70 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $64.26. The stock had a trading volume of 4,239,772 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,248,169. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market cap of $10.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 156.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.11. Knight-Swift Transportation has a 1 year low of $37.76 and a 1 year high of $65.71. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $58.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $52.52.

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The transportation company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.90 billion. Knight-Swift Transportation had a return on equity of 2.88% and a net margin of 0.88%.Knight-Swift Transportation’s quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. Knight-Swift Transportation has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.280-0.320 EPS. Research analysts expect that Knight-Swift Transportation will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Knight-Swift Transportation Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were given a $0.20 dividend. This is an increase from Knight-Swift Transportation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. Knight-Swift Transportation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 195.12%.

Insider Transactions at Knight-Swift Transportation

In related news, EVP Michael K. Liu sold 1,243 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $75,661.41. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Kevin P. Knight sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chairman directly owned 1,305,347 shares in the company, valued at $79,626,167. The trade was a 2.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 42,930 shares of company stock valued at $2,581,186 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Knight-Swift Transportation

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

• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark raised its price target to $70 and kept a “buy” rating, signaling continued analyst confidence and providing near‑term upside support for the stock. Benchmark Raises Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Knight‑Swift introduced Q2 2026 adjusted EPS guidance of $0.45–$0.49, which is roughly in line with the $0.48 consensus — this reduces uncertainty for Q2 but does not materially change expectations. Company Q2 Guidance Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Pre‑earnings coverage (Zacks) flagged that KNX may not have the setup for an earnings beat, reinforcing that expectations heading into the report were modest. Zacks Earnings Preview
• Neutral Sentiment: A recent market commentary listed KNX among stocks worth watching, which may have contributed to trading interest but did not add new company‑specific catalysts. Yahoo Market Note
• Negative Sentiment: Most consequential: Knight‑Swift cut its Q1 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $0.08–$0.10 from a prior $0.28–$0.32 range, well below the ~ $0.25 consensus — management cited higher fuel costs and winter weather as drivers of the shortfall, which is the primary negative catalyst for the stock today. WSJ: Cuts First‑Quarter Guidance

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Knight-Swift Transportation

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Knight-Swift Transportation during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in Knight-Swift Transportation by 1,478.6% during the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 884 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 828 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Knight-Swift Transportation by 151.6% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 941 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 567 shares during the last quarter. Sfam LLC bought a new stake in Knight-Swift Transportation during the fourth quarter worth approximately $70,000. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. bought a new stake in Knight-Swift Transportation during the fourth quarter worth approximately $103,000. 88.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.