As the Q3 earnings season wraps, let’s dig into this quarter’s best and worst performers in the ground transportation industry, including Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) and its peers.

The growth of e-commerce and global trade continues to drive demand for shipping services, especially last-mile delivery, presenting opportunities for ground transportation companies. The industry continues to invest in data, analytics, and autonomous fleets to optimize efficiency and find the most cost-effective routes. Despite the essential services this industry provides, ground transportation companies are still at the whim of economic cycles. Consumer spending, for example, can greatly impact the demand for these companies’ offerings while fuel costs can influence profit margins.

The 16 ground transportation stocks we track reported a softer Q3. As a group, revenues missed analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.9%.

Luckily, ground transportation stocks have performed well with share prices up 11.9% on average since the latest earnings results.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA)

Pivoting its business model after realizing there was more success in delivering produce than selling it, Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) is a provider of freight transportation solutions.

Saia reported revenues of $842.1 million, up 8.6% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, but overall, it was a mixed quarter for the company with an impressive beat of analysts’ sales volume estimates but a miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Saia President and CEO, Fritz Holzgrefe, commented on the quarter stating, “We are pleased with the continued progress of our footprint expansion, as we opened 11 new terminals and relocated one terminal during the third quarter. The majority of the terminals opened in the quarter were in the Great Plains states, and these locations enable us to provide direct service in and out of a geography that has historically been serviced through partner carriers. With these recent terminal openings, we are now able to provide direct service to all of the contiguous 48 states, which significantly enhances our value proposition to our customers. We remain committed to our continued investment in the customer experience. We are encouraged by early customer acceptance, and we are excited to expand our addressable market for new and existing customers.”

Saia pulled off the fastest revenue growth of the whole group. Unsurprisingly, the stock is up 32.4% since reporting and currently trades at $547.97.

Read our full report on Saia here, it’s free.

Best Q3: XPO (NYSE:XPO)

Owning a mobile game simulating freight operations for the Tour de France, XPO (NYSE:XPO) is a transportation company specializing in expedited shipping services.

XPO reported revenues of $2.05 billion, up 3.7% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 1.8%. The business had a very strong quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

XPO scored the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 27.5% since reporting. It currently trades at $153.30.

Is now the time to buy XPO? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q3: Werner (NASDAQ:WERN)

Conducting business in over a 100 countries, Werner (NASDAQ:WERN) offers full-truckload, less-than-truckload, and intermodal delivery services.

Werner reported revenues of $745.7 million, down 8.8% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 2.6%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

Interestingly, the stock is up 4.9% since the results and currently trades at $40.14.

Read our full analysis of Werner’s results here.

Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX)

Covering 1.6 billion loaded miles in 2023 alone, Knight-Swift Transportation (NYSE:KNX) offers less-than-truckload and full truckload delivery services.

Knight-Swift Transportation reported revenues of $1.88 billion, down 7.1% year on year. This result lagged analysts' expectations by 1.8%. It was a softer quarter as it also logged a miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

The stock is up 7.9% since reporting and currently trades at $56.76.

Read our full, actionable report on Knight-Swift Transportation here, it’s free.

U-Haul (NYSE:UHAL)

Founded by a husband and wife duo, U-Haul (NYSE:UHAL) is a provider of rental trucks and storage facilities.

U-Haul reported revenues of $1.66 billion, flat year on year. This result came in 1.7% below analysts' expectations. Overall, it was a disappointing quarter as it also logged a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

The stock is down 5.3% since reporting and currently trades at $72.35.

Read our full, actionable report on U-Haul here, it’s free.

Market Update

In response to the Fed's rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has been gradually trending down from its post-pandemic peak, trending closer to the Fed's 2% target. Despite higher borrowing costs, the economy has avoided flashing recessionary signals. This is the much-desired soft landing that many investors hoped for. The recent rate cuts (0.5% in September and 0.25% in November 2024) have bolstered the stock market, making 2024 a strong year for equities. Donald Trump’s presidential win in November sparked additional market gains, sending indices to record highs in the days following his victory. However, debates continue over possible tariffs and corporate tax adjustments, raising questions about economic stability in 2025.

Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our 9 Best Market-Beating Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.

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