Knight-Swift Q3 EPS Tops Estimates at 83 Cents; KNX Shares Rise 4.4% After Hours

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE: KNX) reported third-quarter adjusted earnings per share of 83 cents on Wednesday after the market closed, beating the consensus estimate by 7 cents and up 51 cents from a year ago. Revenue rose 14% year over year to $2.2 billion, or 8% excluding fuel surcharges, slightly ahead of analysts' $2.17 billion expectation. The truckload unit posted an 89.2% adjusted operating ratio, 700 basis points better year over year, as revenue per loaded mile excluding fuel climbed 10%. The less-than-truckload unit's adjusted operating ratio deteriorated 80 basis points to 91.4%, with tonnage up 3% and revenue per hundredweight down 1%. Adjusted EPS benefited from a $22 million reduction in net interest expense and a lower tax rate. Knight-Swift guided fourth-quarter adjusted EPS to 78 to 84 cents, bracketing the 82-cent consensus. Shares rose 4.4% in after-hours trading.