# Heartland Express, Inc. (HTLD)

> Source: Nexqual · https://nexqual.com/HTLD · data as of 2026-10-22 20:00 UTC · cite as "Nexqual, Heartland Express, Inc. (HTLD), nexqual.com/HTLD" · informational, not investment advice.

**Price:** USD 10.29 (+0.29% on the day) · last close of Oct 22, 2026; US market pre market, not a live price. Prev close 10.26 · day 10.08–10.52 · 52w 7–16.64 · market cap $796M · NMS

## Key facts
- Last four reported quarters (through Jun 30, 2026): revenue $736M, net income -$22.0M (-3.0% margin), free cash flow -$85.8M (SEC filings).
- 1 of 80 tracked superinvestors hold HTLD (13F, Q2 2026): 0 new, 1 added, 0 reduced, 0 unchanged.
- Insider open-market sales, last ~7 months: 1 Form 4 filings, $492K; 1 not under a Rule 10b5-1 plan ($492K); 0 by opportunistic insiders, 0 by routine insiders (three-year test, Cohen, Malloy & Pomorski 2012).
- Insider open-market purchases, last ~7 months: 1 Form 4 filing, $31K; 0 by opportunistic insiders, 0 by routine insiders.
- Analysts: Sell (mean 3.67 on a 1–5 scale) (6 analysts), mean target USD 12.2 (range 12–13).
- Total return with dividends: 1Y +28.4% vs S&P 500 +14.9%; 5Y -36.4% vs S&P 500 +80.3%.
- Next earnings: 2026-10-20, EPS estimate USD 0.04, revenue estimate $177M.

## Financials (SEC 10-K; TTM = last four 10-Q/10-K quarters)
| USD | FY2021 | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | TTM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $607M | $968M | $1.21B | $1.05B | $806M | $736M |
| Operating income | $105M | $188M | $42.4M | -$20.2M | -$57.4M | -$16.8M |
| Net income | $79.3M | $134M | $14.8M | -$29.7M | -$52.5M | -$22.0M |
| EPS (diluted) | $1.00 | $1.69 | $0.19 | -$0.38 | -$0.67 | — |
| Free cash flow | -$9.2M | $34.1M | -$43.3M | $34.8M | -$66.9M | -$85.8M |
| Operating margin | 17.4% | 19.5% | 3.5% | -1.9% | -7.1% | -2.3% |
| Net margin | 13.1% | 13.8% | 1.2% | -2.8% | -6.5% | -3.0% |
| Revenue growth | -5.9% | +59.4% | +24.7% | -13.2% | -23.1% | — |
| Cash + short-term investments | $158M | $49.5M | $28.1M | $12.8M | $18.5M | — |
| Total debt | $0K | $413M | $300M | $201M | $160M | — |
Fiscal years end Dec. EPS is split-adjusted.

## Valuation (price ÷ last four quarters, through Jun 30, 2026)
P/S 1.1x · EV/EBITDA 6.9x · EV/Sales 1.2x · P/B 1.1x · FCF yield -10.78% · Earnings yield -2.76% · Dividend yield (paid, TTM) 0.77% · Net debt $72.5M · EV $868M
P/E at fiscal year-ends: Dec 2023 76.3x.

## Superinvestors (SEC 13F-HR, Q2 2026)
1 of 80 tracked investors hold HTLD. Each row is the investor's latest 13F; change is vs their prior-quarter share count.
| Investor | Firm | % of portfolio | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tweedy Browne |  | 0.16% | $2.1M | Added +9.1% |

## Insider sales (SEC Form 4, open-market, last ~7 months)
0 of 1 under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan (scheduled in advance). Unplanned sales were timed by the insider.
| Trade date | Insider | Role | Shares | Value | % of holdings sold | 10b5-1 plan | Insider type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-15 | Millis David Paul | Director | 31,402 | $492K | 52.5% | No | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023–2025) |
% of holdings sold = shares sold ÷ (shares sold + all holdings the insider reported on that Form 4, direct and through trusts).
Insider type follows Cohen, Malloy & Pomorski (Journal of Finance, 2012). An insider who traded the stock in the same calendar month in each of the past three years is a routine trader; one who traded in each of those years without such a pattern is an opportunistic trader. In their study, trades by opportunistic insiders predicted future returns and trades by routine insiders did not. Counts open-market purchases and sales only (SEC Form 4 codes P and S) by that insider in that company. Not investment advice.

## Insider purchases (SEC Form 4, open-market, last ~7 months)
1 purchase, $31K. Private placements, offerings, dividend reinvestment and employee stock purchase plan buys are excluded.
| Trade date | Insider | Role | Shares | Value | Avg price | Insider type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-10 | Spalding David P | Director | 2,000 | $31K | 15.69 | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023–2025) |

## Analysts
Consensus Sell (mean 3.67 on a 1–5 scale), 6 analysts; mean target USD 12.2 (low 12, high 13).
Rating changes, last 120 days:
| Date | Firm | Action | Rating | Price target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-21 | UBS | Target lowered | Neutral | $13 → $12 |
| 2026-10-20 | Baird | Downgrade | Outperform → Neutral | $16 → $12 |
| 2026-08-13 | Barclays | Target lowered | Underweight | $14 → $12 |
| 2026-08-06 | UBS | Target raised | Neutral | $12 → $13 |
| 2026-07-31 | JP Morgan | Target raised | Underweight | $11 → $12 |
| 2026-07-06 | Morgan Stanley | Target raised | Equal-Weight | $12 → $13 |
| 2026-06-26 | Barclays | Target raised | Underweight | $12 → $14 |

## Total return (dividends reinvested)
|  | 1Y (from 2025-10-23) | 5Y (from 2021-10-18) |
|---|---|---|
| Total return | +28.4% | -36.4% |
| S&P 500 (SPY) | +14.9% | +80.3% |
| Per year | +28.6% | -8.6% |
| Volatility (annualized) | 39.0% | 32.0% |
| Max drawdown | -36.5% (Jun 2026→Oct 2026) | -55.9% (Nov 2021→Nov 2025) |

## Peers (Trucking)
CVLG (Covenant Logistics Group, Inc.) USD 29.77 -0.43% · MRTN (Marten Transport, Ltd.) USD 12.3 -2.84% · ULH (Universal Logistics Holdings, I) USD 17.35 +4.33% · WERN (Werner Enterprises, Inc.) USD 29.18 -2.34% · ARCB (ArcBest Corporation) USD 130.3 -0.39% · RXO (RXO, Inc.) USD 28.92 +0.49%

## More
Full page: https://nexqual.com/HTLD · Free keyless MCP server with the same data and citations: https://mcp.nexqual.com/mcp · Guide for agents: https://nexqual.com/agents · https://nexqual.com/llms.txt

## Company outlook (8-K filed 2026-10-21)

- "The improved financial results reflect stronger freight volumes and improved customer pricing resulting from ongoing industry capacity reductions, even though we do not expect the positive impacts of ongoing contract negotiations to be fully reflected in our operating results until 2027."
- "For the remainder of 2026, we currently expect total net capital expenditures to be approximately $2 to $5 million and $9 to $13 million of total gains on disposal of property and equipment."
- "The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, which speak as of their respective dates."

## Analyst estimates and revisions

| Period | EPS est. | 90d ago | Change | Revenue est. | Analysts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current quarter (ends 2026-12-31) | $0.04 | $0.03 | +48.0% | $176.9M | 3 |
| Next quarter (ends 2027-03-31) | $0.06 | $0.05 | +20.0% | $188.5M | 1 |
| Current fiscal year (ends 2026-12-31) | $0.13 | $0.04 | +250.3% | $716.8M | 3 |
| Next fiscal year (ends 2027-12-31) | $0.44 | $0.55 | -20.4% | $752.0M | 4 |

## Options: expected move (Cboe, 15-min delayed)

| Expiration | Days | ATM IV | Expected move |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-12-18 | 56 | 55.2% | ±17.2% |
| 2027-03-19 | 147 | 55.6% | ±27.7% |