Simplicity Solutions LLC Increases Holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KNX)

Simplicity Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KNX) by 22.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 6,340 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 1,152 shares during the period. Simplicity Solutions LLC’s holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation were worth $366,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,494 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $131,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund boosted its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 1,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its position in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 7,215 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $416,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 2.8% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 7,542 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $378,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the period. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp raised its position in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 2.6% in the third quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 8,725 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $438,000 after buying an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.77% of the company’s stock.

Knight-Swift Transportation Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:KNX opened at $48.16 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.99. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $54.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $54.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $45.73 and a 12-month high of $60.99.

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The transportation company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.38). Knight-Swift Transportation had a return on equity of 3.93% and a net margin of 3.04%. The company had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.92 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Knight-Swift Transportation Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. This is a boost from Knight-Swift Transportation’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. Knight-Swift Transportation’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Knight-Swift Transportation from $62.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $60.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Loop Capital downgraded shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $63.00 to $53.00 in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.77.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Cary M. Flanagan sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.24, for a total transaction of $112,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $287,836.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

About Knight-Swift Transportation

Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides freight transportation services in the United States and Mexico. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Less-than-truckload (LTL), Logistics, and Intermodal. The Truckload segment provides transportation services, which include irregular route and dedicated, refrigerated, expedited, flatbed, and cross-border operations.