Knight-Swift Truckload Revenue Growth Rebounds After a Slow Quarter

The Tip Desk · October 26, 2026 · 4 min read

Third-quarter revenue excluding fuel surcharge rose 7.7% year over year, and the company guided fourth-quarter Adjusted EPS of $0.78 to $0.84.

Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. (KNX) reported third-quarter revenue excluding truckload and LTL fuel surcharge of $1.85 billion, up 7.7% from a year earlier, after 5.5% growth in the second quarter. Total revenue was $2.20 billion.

GAAP operating income was $178.7 million. Adjusted Operating Income was $198.5 million. The consolidated operating ratio improved 550 basis points year over year to 91.9%, and the Adjusted Operating Ratio improved 450 basis points to 89.3%. Net income attributable to Knight-Swift was $118.3 million, or $0.72 a share. Adjusted net income was $135.9 million, or $0.83 a share.

Truckload was the defining turn. Segment revenue excluding fuel surcharge and intersegment transactions grew 6.5% year over year, which the company called the strongest organic growth in over four years, after 2.8% growth in the second quarter. Revenue per loaded mile, excluding fuel surcharge and intersegment transactions, improved 9.7%. Loaded miles declined 3.0%.

The Truckload Adjusted Operating Ratio improved 700 basis points year over year to 89.2%, including a 170 basis point reduction in empty miles percentage. Adjusted Operating Income was $124.6 million. Loaded miles per tractor increased for the eighth consecutive quarter. Total miles per tractor declined 0.9%.

Chief Executive Officer Adam Miller said the Truckload market was largely consistent with normal seasonality and that contractual volumes remained generally stable. He said spot pricing trended better than public indicators and stayed well above contractual rates that continued to accelerate. Tender rejection rates, he said, continued to run at levels two to three times broader market measures. He said fuel and driver-related costs were sequential headwinds.

After the tightening driver market pressured seated truck count in the second quarter, the company said targeted investments in recruiting, training, and driver pay helped stabilize seated truck count in July, which held through the quarter. U.S. Xpress over-the-road reached a mid-90s Adjusted Operating Ratio after the previous quarter marked its first profitable quarter since acquisition. U.S. Xpress total trucking Adjusted Operating Ratio moved into the low 90s while legacy brands achieved an 88.0% Adjusted Operating Ratio.

LTL revenue excluding fuel surcharge increased 0.4% year over year, reversing a 1.4% year-over-year decline in the second quarter. Shipments per day declined 1.4%. Shipment count rose 2.9% sequentially versus a typical modest seasonal decrease. Daily tonnage grew 3.3% on 4.8% growth in weight per shipment, and length of haul grew 6.2%. Revenue per hundredweight excluding fuel surcharge fell 0.7%. The LTL Adjusted Operating Ratio increased 80 basis points to 91.4%, and Adjusted Operating Income declined 8.4% to $29.4 million, primarily from a $4.6 million decrease in gains on sale.

Logistics revenue decreased 1.0% year over year, reversing 8.9% growth in the second quarter, as revenue per load rose 46.7% and load count fell 32.6%. Adjusted Operating Income grew 19.6% to $9.6 million. Gross margin of 18.9% increased 110 basis points year over year and 350 basis points sequentially from second-quarter levels as contract pricing reset.

Intermodal revenue grew 30.6% year over year, after 34.9% growth in the second quarter. Load count improved 13.3% to the highest level in over five years, and revenue per load grew 15.2%, or 5.5% excluding fuel surcharge. The Adjusted Operating Ratio improved 200 basis points to 97.8%.

All Other Segments revenue increased 41.8% to $126.0 million, driven by warehousing and independent contractor support services. Operating income grew 68.4% to $19.5 million. Operating income includes $6.3 million of costs for the new accounts receivable securitization program, which beginning January 1, 2026 is reported in All Other Segments rather than interest expense. The GAAP effective tax rate was 27.4% versus 47.0% a year earlier.

The company expects Adjusted EPS of $0.78 to $0.84 for the fourth quarter of 2026. It expects Truckload revenue excluding fuel surcharge up low double-digit percent with the Adjusted Operating Ratio improving 650 to 750 basis points year over year, LTL revenue excluding fuel surcharge up high single to low double-digit percent, Logistics revenue flat, and Intermodal revenue up 25% to 30%. Full-year 2026 net cash capital expenditures are expected in a range of $600 million to $625 million, a reduction from the previous range of $600 million to $650 million. Miller said the company expects that ongoing cost inflation and constraints on capacity will require further meaningful rate growth in 2027 to support margin repair and investment in fleet assets.