Heartland Express Inc (HTLD)
Industrials
Trucking
12.20 $
-3.9%
vs. previous close
Closing price · As of: 31. Jul 2026
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Basics
Market Cap
The value of the entire company on the market: share price times total shares outstanding.
1.0$B
Shares Outstanding
Total number of shares issued. Price times share count gives market cap.
78Mio.
Float
Share of stock freely tradable on the market — not locked up in the hands of founders, insiders, or major shareholders.
70.0%
Beta
Volatility versus the overall market: 1 = moves like the market, 2 = twice as much, under 1 = calmer than the market.
1.3
Performance
Perf. 1M
Price performance over the last month.
2.80%
Perf. 3M
Price performance over the last 3 months.
51.50%
Perf. 6M
Price performance over the last 6 months.
68.60%
YTD Performance (%)
Price performance since the start of the year (Year to Date).
62.70%
52-Week-High Distance
How far the price sits below its highest point over the last 52 weeks. 0% means the stock is at its year high.
-8.2%
Perf. 1Y
Price performance over the last 12 months.
67.50%
Perf. 3Y
Price performance over the last 3 years.
-4.70%
Perf. 5Y
Price performance over the last 5 years.
-10.78%
Valuation
P/E
Price-to-earnings ratio: how many years of profit does the stock cost? The lower, the cheaper the valuation. No earnings means no P/E.
–
Forward P/E
P/E based on expected earnings for the next 12 months instead of past earnings — analysts' bet on the future.
20.1
PEG
P/E divided by expected earnings growth: puts valuation in relation to growth. Around 1 is considered fair, well above that is pricey.
1.7
P/B
Price-to-book ratio: market value relative to book equity.
1.3
P/S
Price-to-sales ratio: market value divided by annual sales. Important for companies that aren't (yet) profitable.
1.2
EV/EBITDA
Enterprise value including debt (EV) relative to operating profit before depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) — more comparable than P/E because debt counts too. Extreme values arise when EBITDA is near zero.
11.7
Price/FCF
Market value divided by free cash flow: how many years of freely available cash does the stock cost? More honest than P/E because cash flow is harder to dress up.
–
Profitability
Gross Margin
Gross margin: what's left of sales after only direct production costs are deducted — the product's pricing power.
28.1%
EBIT Margin
EBIT margin: operating profit as a percentage of sales — the earning power of the core business before interest and taxes.
–
Net Margin
Net margin: what's left of sales as profit after ALL costs, interest, and taxes.
-5.7%
Return on Equity
Return on equity: how much profit does the company generate per year on shareholders' equity?
-5.6%
Return on Assets
Return on assets: how much profit the company generates from its total assets (equity and debt combined).
-2.8%
Balance Sheet & Safety
Equity Ratio
Equity ratio: equity as a share of total assets. The higher, the more resilient the balance sheet.
–
Debt/Equity
Leverage ratio: financial debt divided by equity. Under 1 is generally seen as solid; negative values mean negative equity.
0.2
fortress balance sheet
Altman Z″
Edward Altman's bankruptcy early-warning score. We use the Z″ variant, built from four balance-sheet ratios — it is designed for service companies and non-manufacturers and uses book value instead of market value. On that scale: below 1.1 = danger zone, 2.6 and up = safe zone, in between a grey area. Because the classic Altman Z is calculated differently, the two numbers are not directly comparable. The formula does not fit banks, insurers, or real-estate stocks.
7.63
Piotroski
Balance-sheet health check by Joseph Piotroski: 9 yes/no criteria on profit, cash flow, leverage, and efficiency. 7+ is very solid, under 3 is a red flag.
7 out of 9
Growth
Sales Growth Last Quarter
Sales growth in the most recently reported quarter versus the same quarter a year ago (YoY).
-19.70%
EPS Growth Last Quarter
Growth in earnings per share in the most recently reported quarter versus the same quarter a year ago (YoY).
-66.10%
Sales Growth (Year)
Sales growth in the last fiscal year versus the year before.
-23.08%
Forward Sales Growth
Sales growth analysts expect over the next 12 months — an estimate, not a guarantee.
7.74%
Forward EPS Growth
Earnings-per-share growth analysts expect over the next 12 months — an estimate, not a guarantee.
2,138.00%
Dividend
Dividend Yield
Annual dividend divided by the current price: what percentage of your investment comes back as a payout each year.
0.54%
Dividend Per Share (TTM)
Sum of dividends paid per share over the last 12 months.
0.08$
Payout Ratio
Share of profit paid out as dividends. Over 100% means the company is paying out more than it earns — not sustainable long-term.
42.1%
Years Without a Cut
How many years in a row the dividend hasn't been cut — a measure of reliability.
3Years
Increase Streak
How many years in a row the dividend has been raised — the gold standard for dividend payers.
0Years
Quality & Screener
Stage
Weinstein phases 1 through 4: 1 = basing, 2 = uptrend (the only buy phase), 3 = topping, 4 = downtrend. Measured against the 30-week line.
2
RS Rating
Relative strength from 1 to 99: an RS of 95 means the stock has outperformed 95% of all stocks.
88
EPS Rating
Earnings growth rating from 1 to 99 versus all stocks — high values mean above-average earnings growth.
10
Piotroski
Balance-sheet health check by Joseph Piotroski: 9 yes/no criteria on profit, cash flow, leverage, and efficiency. 7+ is very solid, under 3 is a red flag.
7 out of 9
Fundamental Rating
Our own Fundamental Rating: 0 to 100 points with an A+ to F grade. 50 points is the average across the universe, 100 the best possible score. It scores growth, earnings surprises, analyst estimates, margins, cash flow, and balance-sheet safety — every stock percentile-ranked against all others. Grades: A+ from 95, A from 75, B from 55, C from 45, D from 25, E from 5, F below.
C (47 out of 100)
fortress balance sheet
Altman Z″
Edward Altman's bankruptcy early-warning score. We use the Z″ variant, built from four balance-sheet ratios — it is designed for service companies and non-manufacturers and uses book value instead of market value. On that scale: below 1.1 = danger zone, 2.6 and up = safe zone, in between a grey area. Because the classic Altman Z is calculated differently, the two numbers are not directly comparable. The formula does not fit banks, insurers, or real-estate stocks.
7.63
AI Rating
–Not yet rated — we only show a category once an SEC-backed file with at least two cited passages is available. How the Rating Is Built
Highlighted are things our editorial team noticed: green = stands out as strong, red = deserves a closer look. No single metric is a verdict on its own — always read it in context.
Analysts & Price Target
Current Price
12.20 $
Price Target (average)
12.80 $
The price target sits 4.9% above the current price.
Combined picture of the price targets and recommendations of every analyst covering the stock. Price targets are expectations for the next 12 months, not promises — and they often follow the price rather than predict it.
Quarterly Figures
| Quarter | EPS (Earnings Per Share) | EPS YoY (%) | Sales ($M) | Sales YoY (%) | Net Margin (%) | OCF ($M) | FCF ($M) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024: Q4 | -0.02 | -136.50 | 243 | -11.90 | -0.80 | 38 | -46 |
| 2025: Q1 | -0.18 | – | 219 | -18.80 | -6.30 | 26 | 2 |
| 2025: Q2 | -0.14 | – | 210 | -23.40 | -5.20 | 21 | -13 |
| 2025: Q3 | -0.11 | – | 197 | -24.40 | -4.20 | 28 | -12 |
| 2025: Q4 | -0.25 | – | 179 | -26.10 | -10.80 | 15 | -44 |
| 2026: Q1 | -0.06 | – | 176 | -19.70 | -2.70 | 23 | 5 |
What Do These Terms Mean?
- EPS (Earnings Per Share):
- Quarterly profit divided by the total share count — how much of the profit works out to a single share.
- YoY (Year over Year):
- Change versus the same quarter a year ago — this is how you compare without seasonal distortion (e.g. the holiday shopping season).
- Sales:
- All revenue for the quarter, before any costs are deducted — the top line of the income statement.
- Net Margin:
- What percentage of sales is left over as profit in the end. Negative means the company is posting a loss.
- OCF (Operating Cash Flow):
- The cash that actually flows into the till from the core business during the quarter — harder to dress up than book profit.
- FCF (Free Cash Flow):
- Operating cash flow minus capital expenditures — the money that's genuinely free to use, say for paying down debt, buybacks, or dividends.
About the Company
Heartland Express, Inc. bietet zusammen mit seinen Tochtergesellschaften Kurz-, Mittel- und Langstrecken-Komplettladungsspeditions- und Transportdienstleistungen in den USA, Mexiko und Kanada an.
| CEO Insider Trades (12 Mo.) | buying own stock |
|---|---|
| Employees | 3,630 |
| Headquarters | North Liberty, IA |
| Website | heartlandexpress.com |
| IPO Date | 26. Mar 1990 |
Management
| Name | Title | Birth Year |
|---|---|---|
| Michael J. Gerdin | Chairman of the Board, President & CEO | 1970 |
| Kent Daryl Rigdon | Chief Operating Officer | 1964 |
| Joshua S. Helmich | Chief Administrative Officer & Secretary | 1976 |
| Brian J. Janssen | Vice President of Sales | – |
Executives per the latest required filings; titles kept in their original language. Source: fundamental data.
Chart
Interactive price chart (TradingView).
Data as of: July 31, 2026 · Source: fundamental data & SEC filings (annual and quarterly reports, 10-K/10-Q)
Note: pure fact-based analysis, not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell. All figures without guarantee.