Landstar stock price target cut to $136 at Evercore ISI

Tuesday, Evercore ISI made a slight adjustment to Landstar System ’s (NASDAQ:LSTR) price target, bringing it down to $136 from $137, while maintaining an In Line rating on the shares. According to InvestingPro data, the company maintains strong financial health with more cash than debt on its balance sheet and a healthy current ratio of 1.96x. The revision follows the company’s first-quarter earnings report, which matched both the preannounced results and exceeded analyst estimates by $0.02. Landstar reported a first-quarter earnings per share (EPS) of $0.95, excluding a one-time charge of $0.10 related to a supply chain fraud incident.

The fraud, which led to a two-week delay in the earnings release, was confined to a specific incident within its international forwarding operation and resulted in a $4.8 million cost. Analysts at Evercore ISI consider this a non-recurring issue that should not significantly impact the company’s long-term financials. Worth noting, Landstar has demonstrated consistent shareholder returns, maintaining dividend payments for 21 consecutive years and achieving a 9.19% price return in the past week despite recent challenges. Despite this, the firm is adjusting its EPS estimates for the second quarter of 2025 to $1.21 from $1.32, and for the full years of 2025 and 2026 to $4.81 from $5.10, and to $5.90 from $6.23, respectively.

The current freight market is not expected to provide immediate relief to Landstar’s financial performance. This outlook is based on the current economic environment, which continues to challenge the company’s operations. However, there is a cautious optimism regarding the 90-day tariff pause with China, which could potentially lead to an increase in freight demand leading up to August.

Despite the potential for a short-term boost in freight demand, Evercore ISI does not anticipate a significant surge in second-quarter volumes or a substantial recovery in revenue per load across most of Landstar’s segments until a more stable economic backdrop emerges. The firm’s maintained In Line rating reflects this cautious stance, alongside the updated 12-month price target of $136. With analyst targets ranging from $120 to $176, investors seeking deeper insights into Landstar’s valuation and growth prospects can access comprehensive analysis through InvestingPro, which offers exclusive financial health scores and detailed Pro Research Reports covering 1,400+ top stocks.

In other recent news, Landstar System Inc. reported its financial results for the first quarter of 2025, revealing a mixed performance. The company’s earnings per share (EPS) came in at $0.85, falling short of the projected $0.94. However, Landstar exceeded revenue expectations, reporting $1.15 billion against a forecasted $1.13 billion. Despite the revenue beat, the company faced challenges, including a decrease in truckloads and cross-border revenue, impacting its core trucking operations.

Landstar’s gross profit declined to $98.3 million from $113.9 million in the previous year, with a reduced gross profit margin of 8.5%. Additionally, the company reported a $4.8 million pretax charge related to a supply chain fraud issue, which affected its international freight forwarding operations. The company did not provide formal guidance for the second quarter of 2025 but anticipates revenues to surpass Q1 levels while remaining below Q2 2024 figures.

Analysts have expressed concerns over the company’s EPS miss, which was reflected in a decline in Landstar’s stock price. Despite these challenges, Landstar’s heavy haul services showed strong growth, with a 6% increase in revenue. The company continues to invest in technology to support its network of independent business owners and is monitoring potential impacts from trade policies and regulatory changes.

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