It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX Quick QuoteKNX - Free Report) . Shares have added about 6.8% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.

But investors have to be wondering, will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Knight-Swift due for a pullback? Well, first let's take a quick look at the latest earnings report in order to get a better handle on the recent drivers for Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late.

Knight-Swift Q1 Earnings Match Estimates

Knight-Swift reported first-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of 9 cents per share, which matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate and declined 67.9% year over year. The reported figure came below the guided range of 28-32 cents.

Total revenues of $1.85 million almost came in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate and grew 1.4% year over year. Revenues, excluding truckload and LTL fuel surcharge, grew 0.3% year over year to $1.63 billion.

Total operating expenses (on a reported basis) grew 3.6% year over year to $1.82 billion.

KNX’s Q1 Segmental Results

Revenues (excluding fuel surcharge and inter-segment transactions) from Truckload totaled $1.05 billion, down 0.3% year over year, owing to a 1.4% improvement in revenue per loaded mile, excluding fuel surcharge and intersegment transactions, largely offset a 1.8% decrease in loaded miles. Adjusted operating income fell 16.4% year over year. The first-quarter adjusted operating ratio was 70 basis points higher year over year.

The Less-Than-Truckload segment generated revenues (excluding fuel surcharges) worth $313.13 million in the first quarter, grew 2.6% year over year owing to 5.2% increase in weight per shipment and an 8.5% increase in length of haul offset a 1.0% decrease in shipments per day. Revenue per hundredweight, excluding fuel surcharge, fell 0.7%, driven by the increase in weight per shipment while renewal rates continue their recent trend of mid single-digit percentage increases. Revenue per shipment, excluding fuel surcharge, increased by 4.4% year-over-year. Adjusted operating income fell 93.1% year over year, and the adjusted operating ratio of 99.6% grew 540 basis points year over year.

Revenues from Logistics (excluding inter-segment transactions) amounted to $127.60 million, down 9.9% year over year, owing to a 18.9% decline in load count, partially offset by a 10.4% increase in revenue per load. Adjusted operating income decreased 24.1% year over year to $4.78 million. The adjusted operating ratio grew 70 bps to 96.2%.

Intermodal revenues (excluding inter-segment transactions) totaled $93.58 million, up 2.7% year over year, as 1.6% increase in revenue per load and a 1.2% increase in load count offset headwinds from winter weather in the reported quarter.

Within the All Other Segments, revenues grew 13.5%, and operating results declined more than 100% year over year, owing to the inclusion of $5.2 million of costs for the accounts receivable securitization program, startup costs on new contract awards in the company’s warehousing business.

Liquidity

Knight-Swift exited the first quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $222.77 million compared with $220.42 million at the prior-quarter end. Long-term debt (excluding current maturities) was $706.02 million compared with $1.02 billion at the end of the prior quarter.

KNX’s Guidance

KNX expects its second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings per share to be in the range of 45-49 cents. 

Truckload Segment revenue, excluding fuel surcharge, are expected to be up low single digit percent year-over-year with operating margins improving 100 - 200 basis points year-over-year for second quarter. LTL segment revenues, excluding fuel surcharge, are expected to be up low single digit percent year-over-year in the second quarter, driven by mix and yield improvement, with shipment count relatively stable year-over-year.

Logistics segment revenues are expected to be low-to-mid single-digit percent year-over-year in second quarter. Intermodal Segment load count is expected to be up high single to low double-digit percent sequentially in second quarter. All Other Segments’ operating income, before including the $11.5 million quarterly intangible asset amortization, is anticipated to be between $14 million and $18 million in the second quarter.

Net interest expense is expected to be fairly flat sequentially in second quarter. Net cash capital expenditures for 2026 are expected to be in the range of 600 million - $650 million (prior view: $625 million-$675 million). Adjusted tax rate is expected to be between 25.5% and 26.5% for second quarter of 2026 as well as for full year 2026.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

In the past month, investors have witnessed a upward trend in estimates review.

VGM Scores

At this time, Knight-Swift has a nice Growth Score of B, however its Momentum Score is doing a bit better with an A. Charting a somewhat similar path, the stock was allocated a grade of B on the value side, putting it in the second quintile for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of A. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Notably, Knight-Swift has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.

Performance of an Industry Player

Knight-Swift belongs to the Zacks Transportation - Truck industry. Another stock from the same industry, JB Hunt (JBHT Quick QuoteJBHT - Free Report) , has gained 2.2% over the past month. More than a month has passed since the company reported results for the quarter ended March 2026.

JB Hunt reported revenues of $3.06 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +4.6%. EPS of $1.49 for the same period compares with $1.17 a year ago.

For the current quarter, JB Hunt is expected to post earnings of $1.69 per share, indicating a change of +29% from the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed +0.4% over the last 30 days.

JB Hunt has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) based on the overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions. Additionally, the stock has a VGM Score of B.