Robert W. Baird Issues Positive Forecast for Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) Stock Price

Key Points

• Robert W. Baird raised its price target on Knight‑Swift to $70 (from $62) and rates the stock "outperform," while several other analysts have lifted targets—consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $64.33.
• Despite the bullish analyst outlook, Knight‑Swift missed Q1 EPS (reported $0.09 vs. ~$0.29 expected) and swung to a loss even as revenue (~$1.85B) was roughly in line, with management citing tighter truckload capacity and higher fuel costs as margin headwinds.
• Company insiders have recently been net sellers (CFO sold 5,770 shares; Chairman sold 30,000 shares), with insiders owning about 2.90% of the stock and 42,930 shares sold over the past 90 days.

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by Robert W. Baird from $62.00 to $70.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the transportation company's stock. Robert W. Baird's target price would suggest a potential upside of 9.43% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Benchmark raised their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Barclays raised their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. UBS Group upgraded Knight-Swift Transportation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $54.00 to $66.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Knight-Swift Transportation from $49.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Knight-Swift Transportation has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $64.33.

Knight-Swift Transportation Stock Performance

Knight-Swift Transportation stock opened at $63.97 on Thursday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $58.89 and its 200-day moving average is $53.38. The company has a market cap of $10.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 156.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Knight-Swift Transportation has a 12 month low of $37.76 and a 12 month high of $66.61.

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.85 billion. Knight-Swift Transportation had a return on equity of 2.88% and a net margin of 0.88%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.28 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Knight-Swift Transportation will post 1.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Knight-Swift Transportation news, CFO Joshua Smith sold 5,770 shares of Knight-Swift Transportation stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.91, for a total transaction of $351,450.70. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,214 shares in the company, valued at $561,224.74. The trade was a 38.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Kevin P. Knight sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.00, for a total value of $1,830,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 1,305,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at $79,626,167. This trade represents a 2.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 42,930 shares of company stock valued at $2,581,186 over the last 90 days. 2.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Knight-Swift Transportation

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 4.5% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,183 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $298,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 44.4% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 868 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 123.9% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 544 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 0.6% in the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 52,930 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $2,091,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,240 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.77% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Knight-Swift Transportation

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

• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen’s Jason Seidl reiterated a Buy rating, arguing tighter truckload capacity, regulatory drivers and potential margin upside support KNX’s outlook. TD Cowen Buy Note
• Positive Sentiment: Susquehanna raised its price target to $72 (maintaining a neutral rating), signaling analyst recognition of upside versus the current price. Susquehanna PT Raise
• Neutral Sentiment: Top‑line performance was essentially in line: revenue ≈ $1.85B, roughly matching estimates; management hosted a conference call and published the slide deck for details. These items provide more disclosure but no clear directional surprise. Q1 Press Release & Call
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst consensus remains constructive overall (consensus described as a “Moderate Buy”), reflecting mixed views across the sell side. Analyst Consensus
• Negative Sentiment: EPS missed expectations — reported $0.09 vs. street ~ $0.29 — and the company swung to a first‑quarter loss; that earnings miss is the primary near‑term negative catalyst. Earnings Press Release / Deck
• Negative Sentiment: Management cited a tightening truckload market and higher fuel costs (partly attributed to geopolitical events) as headwinds that pressured margins this quarter. WSJ: Q1 Loss & Headwinds
• Negative Sentiment: The earnings call/transcript provides detail on operational pressures and recovery timing; investors focused on margin recovery cadence may remain cautious until clearer improvement is shown. Earnings Call Transcript

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.

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