Knight-Swift Transportation Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:KNX)

Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KNX) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 4,943 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 226% compared to the typical volume of 1,518 put options.

Knight-Swift Transportation News Roundup

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

Knight-Swift Transportation Trading Up 4.4%

Shares of KNX traded up $2.70 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $64.26. 4,240,757 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,248,515. The firm has a market cap of $10.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 156.74, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.11. Knight-Swift Transportation has a 12-month low of $37.76 and a 12-month high of $65.71. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average price is $58.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $52.52.

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 21st. The transportation company reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.05). The business 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%.The firm’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. Knight-Swift Transportation has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.280-0.320 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Knight-Swift Transportation will post 2.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Knight-Swift Transportation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is a positive change from Knight-Swift Transportation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Knight-Swift Transportation’s payout ratio is 195.12%.

Insider Activity

In other Knight-Swift Transportation news, CFO Joshua Smith sold 5,770 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.91, for a total transaction of $351,450.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,214 shares in the company, valued at approximately $561,224.74. This trade represents a 38.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO James L. Fitzsimmons sold 5,917 shares of Knight-Swift Transportation stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.77, for a total transaction of $324,074.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 8,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $477,375.32. This represents a 40.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 42,930 shares of company stock valued at $2,581,186. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 23.6% during 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 period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,496,137 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $335,682,000 after purchasing an additional 76,342 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,397,338 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $439,016,000 after purchasing an additional 129,651 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 4,676,422 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $244,250,000 after purchasing an additional 315,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 50.4% during the 4th quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 2,939,212 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $153,662,000 after purchasing an additional 984,422 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KNX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Stephens reduced their price target on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Benchmark boosted their price target on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $49.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.11.

About Knight-Swift Transportation

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.