HTLD NASDAQ Week ended 31 Jul 2026

Weekly Investor Report

Heartland Express Inc · Industrials · Trucking

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Latest close 12.23 USD
-14.4% latest week
Weekly setup

Mixed setup

The weekly trend is active. Price is -2.2% below the Trend Line and sits at 54.6% of its 52-week range. The latest completed week returned -14.4%, after a -17.9% four-week move. The latest factor snapshot indicates quality ranks weakly versus its universe; growth ranks weakly; valuation is neither clearly cheap nor expensive. Options positioning is bullish with 43/100 conviction, while the latest news-sentiment score is 52/100.

Setup score 50 out of 100
Latest Close 12.23 USD 31 Jul 2026
1W Return -14.4% latest completed week
4W Return -17.9% short-term follow-through
12W Return -7.4% quarterly tape
Trend Breadth 59.6% 31 of 52 weeks active
Volume Ratio 1.3x vs 13-week average
What is working
  • The trend backdrop is active with a 31-week active streak.
  • Price is above Fair Value, showing premium demand versus the model.
  • Activity pressure is positive on the latest completed week.
  • Next-week expectancy is positive at 57.38% based on similar historical setup states.
What could go wrong
  • Price is below the Trend Line, which keeps downside pressure in focus.
  • 6 reversal markers appear in the recent smart-money tape.
  • The share remains more than 20% below its 52-week high.
  • The latest week was a sharp negative move.
What to watch next
  • Trend Line remains the key weekly regime level.
  • Activity pressure is the gauge to monitor for confirmation or fade.
  • A volume ratio above 1.5x would show stronger participation in the next move.
Price follow-through -14.4% Latest completed week; four-week move -17.9%. Indicator stack 78/45 Trend and activity pressure are weighted against the latest 12-week confirmation window. Trend backdrop Active The trend backdrop defines the current weekly regime. Patient Capital Quiet Activity-pressure buy-signal status for institutional accumulation timing. Next-Week Expectancy Positive 57.38% Historical one-week expectancy contributes to the evidence score when direction is confirmed. Options pressure Bullish 43/100 conviction; expected move 17.4%. News sentiment 52/100 44 relevant articles in the latest sentiment read. Event risk 23 Jul Latest stored earnings date was 23 Jul 2026.
01 · Price action

Where price is—and whether the trend supports it

The weekly trend is active. Price is -2.2% below the Trend Line and sits at 54.6% of its 52-week range. The latest completed week returned -14.4%, after a -17.9% four-week move.

Study the full chart

52-week price path

Price vs Trend Line and Fair Value
Price Trend Line Fair Value
02 · Volume and demand

Is real participation confirming the move?

Latest weekly volume is 1.3x the 13-week average. Participation is around or above normal and provides reasonable confirmation.

26-week volume confirmation

Bar height shows volume; colour shows the weekly price direction
6 Feb 13 Feb 20 Feb 27 Feb 6 Mar 13 Mar 20 Mar 27 Mar 3 Apr 10 Apr 17 Apr 24 Apr 1 May 8 May 15 May 22 May 29 May 5 Jun 12 Jun 19 Jun 26 Jun 3 Jul 10 Jul 17 Jul 24 Jul 31 Jul
Up week Down week
Demand beneath price

Activity pressure and institutional-style signals

These indicators assess whether participation is improving beneath the headline price move. They are supporting evidence, not proof of institutional buying.

Activity pressure path

Latest 0.9412-week average 0.92

12-week confirmation

Trend active12/12Active trend-backdrop weeks in the latest 12-week window.
Positive pressure12/12Weeks with constructive activity pressure in the latest 12-week window.
Positive leadership12/12Weeks with positive relative leadership in the latest 12-week window.
Activity pressure0.94Current proprietary activity-pressure read.
Buy signals0Accumulation signal count in the latest 12 weeks.
Reversal markers66 reversal markers

No recent accumulation markers. 6 reversal markers.

03 · Momentum and leadership

Is performance persistent—and is the stock leading?

Performance is -17.9% over four weeks, -7.4% over 12 weeks, and 63.5% over one year. The current trend has remained active for 31 consecutive weeks.

Performance by holding period

1W-14.4%
4W-17.9%
12W-7.4%
26W21.4%
52W63.5%
Active trend streak31 weeks
Active weeks in one year31
Trend breadth59.6%

Activity pressure vs relative leadership

Activity pressureRelative leadership
Pressure0.13Latest activity-pressure read.
Pressure change-89.7%Four-week change in activity pressure.
Leadership5.59Latest relative-leadership reading.
RS change-79.5%Four-week change in relative leadership.
04 · Fundamentals and valuation

What investors are paying for—and the quality behind it

The latest factor snapshot indicates quality ranks weakly versus its universe; growth ranks weakly; valuation is neither clearly cheap nor expensive.

Open full factor analysis
Factor week 26 Jul 2026 Financial statements through 31 Mar 2026 Field coverage 91% Model confidence 87%

Relative factor standing

Higher display scores are better. Each score is converted from the underlying universe rank, where rank 1 is best.

Overall factor strength80/100Blend of value, momentum, and quality. Underlying universe rank 21; rank 1 is best.
Value75/100Relative valuation strength. Underlying universe rank 26; rank 1 is best.
Quality15/100Profitability and accounting quality. Underlying universe rank 86; rank 1 is best.
Momentum92/100Medium-term price momentum. Underlying universe rank 9; rank 1 is best.
Growth14/100Revenue and earnings growth. Underlying universe rank 87; rank 1 is best.
How to read this

Quality and valuation are separate questions

A strong company can still carry a demanding valuation. This report shows profitability, growth, balance-sheet strength, and the price paid for those characteristics separately.

Valuation

How much investors are paying for earnings, sales, and cash flow.

P/E
-
Price divided by trailing earnings.
Price / sales
1.5x
Market value relative to trailing revenue.
EV / EBITDA
11.3x
Enterprise value relative to operating cash earnings.
Free-cash-flow yield
19.5%
Free cash flow as a share of enterprise value.

Business quality

Margins and the return generated on invested capital.

Gross margin
9.1%
Gross profit retained from each unit of revenue.
Operating margin
-5.9%
Operating profit retained from revenue.
Free-cash-flow margin
31.1%
Free cash flow generated from revenue.
Return on invested capital
-3.9%
Operating return generated on invested capital.

Growth and financial strength

Recent business growth and accounting strength.

Revenue growth
-23.5%
Latest one-year revenue growth.
EPS growth
-
Latest one-year earnings-per-share growth.
Free-cash-flow growth
-11.3%
Latest one-year free-cash-flow growth.
Piotroski F-score
4/9
Nine-point accounting-strength checklist.

Shareholder return and balance sheet

Cash returned to owners and financial leverage.

Dividend yield
0.6%
Cash dividends relative to market value.
Buyback yield
0.9%
Net share repurchases relative to market value.
Shareholder yield
1.5%
Dividend yield plus net buyback yield.
Net debt / EBITDA
1.0x
Balance-sheet debt relative to operating cash earnings.
05 · Ownership, options, and sentiment

What other market participants are doing

Options, insider transactions, market sentiment, and activity-pressure signals can confirm or challenge the price story. None should be used alone.

Options positioningBullish

HTLD shows bullish options pressure with a 43/100 conviction score, put-call volume ratio of 0.46, expected move of 17.4%, and Sharemaestro trend signal active.

Conviction43/100
Expected move17.4%
Put/call volume0.46
Pressure44
Speculation17
Volatility60
Trend agreement58
Open options detail
Insider activity10 / 7

10 acquisitions and 7 disposals in the latest 180-day insider tape.

Acquisitions / disposals over the latest 180 days. Insider activity is context, not a stand-alone signal.
News sentiment52/100

Weighted news tone is neutral across 44 relevant articles.

11 positive · 26 neutral · 7 negative
Patient CapitalQuiet

Activity-pressure buy-signal evidence highlights potential institutional accumulation windows.

No recent buy signal
06 · Catalysts and risk

What can move the shares—and how volatile the path has been

Event timing, options-implied movement, drawdown, and weekly return distribution frame the risk around the current setup.

Next earnings23 JulLatest stored earnings date was 23 Jul 2026.
Options expected move17.4%Nearest-chain priced movement where available.
52-week drawdown-26.4%Distance below the 52-week high.
13-week volatility6.6%Standard deviation of weekly returns.

Weekly gains and losses

Latest 26 completed weeks

Each bar is one week. Gains rise above the zero line; losses fall below it. Taller bars mean a larger weekly move.

Weeks higher16 of 2610 weeks finished lower.
Best week+13.7%Week of 6 Feb.
Worst week-14.4%Week of 31 Jul.
Latest week-14.4%Week of 31 Jul.

Shape of recent returns

Strong gains10
Modest gains6
Flat weeks0
Modest losses4
Sharp losses6
Recent vol6.6%13-week weekly-return volatility.
Base vol6.0%52-week weekly-return volatility.
Up/down split29/23Count of positive and negative weeks in the 52-week window.
Average skew5.3% / -4.1%Average positive week versus average negative week.
07 · Sector and peer context

Is this stock leading—or simply moving with its group?

Sector and industry breadth distinguish company-specific strength from a broad group move.

08 · Evidence and weekly data

The underlying research record

Every top-level statement above should be traceable to a stored market, fundamental, event, or positioning observation.

Weekly tape58/100

Trend, activity pressure, participation, and risk combine to a 58/100 tape read.

 Indicator analysis82/100

Latest 12-week confirmation: trend 12/12, activity pressure 12/12, relative leadership 12/12.

Activity pressure 0.94; 6 reversal markers Next-Week ExpectancyPositive 57.38%

Next-week expectancy is positive with a 57.38% historical one-week setup read.

Adds short-term historical context without overriding trend, activity, or relative leadership. Factors63/100

O'Shaughnessy factor stack blends value, quality, momentum, and confidence.

Buyback Yield rank 31; Small Cap Core rank 37 Patient CapitalQuiet

Activity-pressure buy-signal evidence highlights potential institutional accumulation windows.

No recent buy signal Options60/100

HTLD shows bullish options pressure with a 43/100 conviction score, put-call volume ratio of 0.46, expected move of 17.4%, and Sharemaestro trend signal active.

Bullish · Call-side pressure · Expected move 17.4% Sentiment52/100

Weighted news tone is neutral across 44 relevant articles.

Heartland Express (HTLD) Stock Rebounds To Profit As Revenue Shrinks Insiders10 / 7

10 acquisitions and 7 disposals in the latest 180-day insider tape.

 Earnings23 Jul

Latest stored earnings date was 23 Jul 2026.
WeekCloseReturnTrend LineFair ValuePressureLeadershipVolumeTrend
31 Jul 202612.23 USD-14.4%12.51 USD11.25 USD0.135.594.1MOn
24 Jul 202614.28 USD-7.2%12.41 USD11.27 USD0.4624.573.5MOn
17 Jul 202615.39 USD4.0%12.24 USD11.28 USD0.8333.053.4MOn
10 Jul 202614.80 USD-0.7%12.02 USD11.29 USD0.9723.682.0MOn
3 Jul 202614.90 USD-3.9%11.84 USD11.29 USD1.2827.332.1MOn
26 Jun 202615.51 USD7.6%11.65 USD11.29 USD1.5134.403.7MOn
19 Jun 202614.42 USD-10.4%11.39 USD11.29 USD1.4420.213.5MOn
12 Jun 202616.09 USD2.4%11.16 USD11.30 USD1.4438.223.4MOn
5 Jun 202615.72 USD5.0%10.87 USD11.30 USD1.3139.143.4MOn
29 May 202614.97 USD4.5%10.60 USD11.30 USD1.0927.462.1MOn
22 May 202614.33 USD7.9%10.36 USD11.30 USD1.0126.033.3MOn
15 May 202613.28 USD0.6%10.15 USD11.31 USD0.8018.643.0MOn
8 May 202613.20 USD-1.9%9.98 USD11.32 USD0.5017.752.3MOn
1 May 202613.45 USD3.4%9.80 USD11.33 USD0.2426.782.7MOn
How to use this report

This is a completed-week research summary. It explains the available evidence and its conflicts; it does not predict a guaranteed outcome or replace your own risk assessment. Fundamental figures may refer to an earlier financial reporting period, which is shown above.