Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KNX) Shares Acquired by Next Century Growth Investors LLC

Next Century Growth Investors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (NYSE:KNX - Free Report) by 37.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 170,466 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 46,465 shares during the quarter. Next Century Growth Investors LLC owned about 0.11% of Knight-Swift Transportation worth $9,042,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KNX. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Knight-Swift Transportation by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,980,109 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $423,265,000 after acquiring an additional 506,491 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 4,201,276 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $221,541,000 after purchasing an additional 125,827 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Knight-Swift Transportation by 1.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,740,873 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $147,529,000 after purchasing an additional 46,436 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Knight-Swift Transportation by 36.8% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,885,438 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $100,004,000 after purchasing an additional 507,370 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Knight-Swift Transportation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,839,000. 88.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on KNX shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Knight-Swift Transportation from $57.00 to $49.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from $65.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Knight-Swift Transportation from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Knight-Swift Transportation in a research note on Monday. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Knight-Swift Transportation from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $66.00 to $46.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Knight-Swift Transportation has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $56.00.

Knight-Swift Transportation Trading Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE KNX traded up $1.24 during trading on Thursday, hitting $39.40. 1,096,713 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,309,852. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.14 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $46.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $51.91. Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $36.69 and a 1 year high of $61.51.

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.03. Knight-Swift Transportation had a return on equity of 2.43% and a net margin of 1.59%. On average, equities analysts predict that Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. will post 2.13 EPS for the current year.

Knight-Swift Transportation Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Knight-Swift Transportation's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Knight-Swift Transportation's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 98.63%.

Insider Activity at Knight-Swift Transportation

In related news, Director Douglas L. Col acquired 5,000 shares of Knight-Swift Transportation stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $45.37 per share, for a total transaction of $226,850.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,000 shares in the company, valued at $226,850. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Knight-Swift Transportation Profile

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.