What is Zacks Research's Estimate for KNX FY2026 Earnings?

Key Points

• Zacks Research cut its FY2026 EPS estimate for Knight‑Swift to $2.04 per share, below the $2.14 consensus, signaling a softer near‑term earnings outlook.
• Knight‑Swift missed Q1 expectations, reporting $0.09 EPS versus a $0.29 consensus while revenue was roughly in line at $1.85 billion and net margins remained thin (0.45%), keeping focus on execution and pricing recovery.
• Despite the downgrade, multiple analysts have raised price targets and the stock holds a MarketBeat consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with a consensus target of $66.71, supported by significant recent institutional buying.

Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KNX - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at Zacks Research issued their FY2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Knight-Swift Transportation in a research note issued on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research analyst Team anticipates that the transportation company will post earnings of $2.04 per share for the year. The consensus estimate for Knight-Swift Transportation's current full-year earnings is $2.14 per share.

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.85 billion. Knight-Swift Transportation had a return on equity of 2.94% and a net margin of 0.45%.The company's revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 EPS.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $60.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Evercore upgraded Knight-Swift Transportation from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $65.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Citigroup upgraded Knight-Swift Transportation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $64.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.71.

Knight-Swift Transportation Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of KNX stock opened at $63.45 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 302.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.15. Knight-Swift Transportation has a twelve month low of $38.63 and a twelve month high of $67.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $59.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.70.

Knight-Swift Transportation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. This is a positive change from Knight-Swift Transportation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Knight-Swift Transportation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 380.95%.

Insider Transactions at Knight-Swift Transportation

In other news, Chairman Kevin P. Knight sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chairman directly owned 1,305,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at $79,626,167. The trade was a 2.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Joshua Smith sold 5,770 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.91, for a total value of $351,450.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,214 shares in the company, valued at $561,224.74. This represents a 38.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KNX. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 2,468,293 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Knight-Swift Transportation by 513.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,416,865 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $126,354,000 after buying an additional 2,022,996 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Knight-Swift Transportation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $92,070,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in Knight-Swift Transportation by 269.7% during the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,231,439 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $88,164,000 after buying an additional 1,627,791 shares during the period. Finally, Junto Capital Management LP raised its stake in Knight-Swift Transportation by 252.4% during the 3rd quarter. Junto Capital Management LP now owns 2,262,145 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $89,377,000 after buying an additional 1,620,224 shares during the period. 88.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Knight-Swift Transportation

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

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised several forward-quarter and FY2027 EPS estimates (examples: Q3/Q4 2026, Q1–Q4 2027), and lifted FY2027 to $3.21 from $3.04 — implying accelerating earnings after FY2026 and improving fundamentals vs. prior expectations.
• Positive Sentiment: Seeking Alpha publishes a bullish operational view: improved truckload utilization, a better pricing environment and management raising truckload bid targets — supportive for revenue and margin recovery. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Knight‑Swift is drawing attention from Russell 1000 momentum flows, which can bring index-driven demand and liquidity into the shares. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks also issued modest upgrades to early-2028 quarterly estimates (e.g., Q1 2028 at $0.75) indicating expected continuation of the recovery into FY2028, though longer-term figures remain subject to cyclicality in freight demand.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks cut its FY2026 EPS estimate to $2.04 (below the consensus of $2.14), signaling a weaker near-term outlook that likely contributed to intraday selling pressure.
• Negative Sentiment: There were small downward tweaks to some near-term slots (Q2 2026 trimmed to $0.47 from $0.48; FY2028 trimmed slightly to $4.27 from $4.32) — these reductions underscore residual uncertainty around the immediate cadence of margin recovery.
• Negative Sentiment: Remember the company’s recent Q1 2026 results showed an EPS miss and thin net margins, which keeps investor focus on execution and pricing traction over the next few quarters (a factor amplifying sensitivity to analyst tweaks).

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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