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Investing.com - Evercore ISI has raised its price target on Knight Transportation (NYSE:KNX) to $47.00 from $42.00 while maintaining an "In Line" rating on the stock. The transportation company, currently trading at $47.39 with a market capitalization of $7.69 billion, has seen its stock gain nearly 20% over the past six months. According to InvestingPro data, analysts’ price targets for KNX range from $42 to $67.
Knight Transportation reported adjusted earnings per share of $0.32, excluding an impairment charge, which fell below Evercore’s forecast of $0.36 and the Street average of $0.37. The company’s results were significantly impacted by elevated insurance costs that reduced EPS by approximately $0.10, which would have otherwise resulted in a quarterly total of $0.42. InvestingPro analysis reveals that 15 analysts have recently revised their earnings expectations downward for the upcoming period.
For the fourth quarter of 2025, Knight Transportation provided guidance of $0.34-0.40 per share. While this guidance includes some seasonal truckload rate improvement, management did not support the narrative of accelerated capacity removals leading to rate spikes, noting that any capacity-led rate recovery would more likely occur in the second quarter of 2026 rather than immediately.
The company’s outlook includes strong EBIT growth at its Logistics unit and near breakeven Intermodal results in Q4, offset partly by slower-than-expected quarter-to-date LTL volumes and a nearly 400 basis point sequential deterioration of LTL margins.
Based on these developments, Evercore has raised its Q4 2025 EPS estimate to $0.36 from $0.26, and its 2026 EPS forecast to $2.24 from $2.10, citing a higher margin starting point for the Truckload and Logistics segments. With a gross profit margin of 24.14% and consistent dividend payments for 22 consecutive years, Knight Transportation maintains a solid financial foundation. For deeper insights into KNX’s valuation and growth prospects, including exclusive ProTips and comprehensive financial analysis, visit InvestingPro, where you’ll find the detailed Pro Research Report covering all essential metrics and expert analysis.
In other recent news, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. reported its third-quarter 2025 financial results, which presented a mixed performance. The company announced earnings per share (EPS) of $0.32, which fell short of the company’s guidance range of $0.36-$0.42 and the consensus estimate of $0.37. This earnings miss was largely due to insurance-related items impacting adjusted EPS by $0.10. However, Knight-Swift’s revenue reached $1.93 billion, surpassing the anticipated $1.90 billion, marking a 2.4% increase compared to the previous year. In a related development, Stifel raised its price target for Knight Transportation to $52 from $45, while maintaining a Buy rating on the stock. This adjustment reflects the firm’s confidence in the company’s strong operations despite the earnings miss. These recent developments highlight the ongoing financial dynamics at Knight-Swift.
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