JBHT vs SAIA vs KNX Stock Comparison

Hunt J B Transport Services, Saia and Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
SAIA Saia Inc
$332.14 -3.4% 1M +13.8% 1Y
Market cap
$8.75B
P/E
31.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$3.39B
Div. yield
–
Trucking Industrials
3 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Hunt J B Transport Services leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Hunt J B Transport Services 6, Saia 3, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionJBHTSAIAKNXLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $21.02B $8.75B $9.82B JBHT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 31.1x 31.5x 228.8x JBHT
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 32.0x 31.2x 28.3x KNX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +10.6% +4.8% +4.1% JBHT
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 5.1% 8.2% 0.6% SAIA
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 15.1% 10.2% 1.6% JBHT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.7x 0.0x 0.2x SAIA
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +35.6% +13.8% +39.1% KNX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +2.9%/yr +4.1%/yr +1.7%/yr SAIA
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 34.8% 46.3% 37.6% JBHT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 50/100 45/100 36/100 JBHT

Percentile Scorecard

JBHTSAIAKNX

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisJBHTSAIAKNX
Valuation 29 #97 of 136 23 #105 of 136 47 #73 of 136
Growth 56 #54 of 122 53 #58 of 122 30 #86 of 122
Profitability 68 #39 of 119 59 #50 of 119 33 #80 of 119
Financial Health 58 #63 of 147 87 #20 of 147 63 #55 of 147
Shareholder Returns 39 #52 of 84 4 #81 of 84 8 #77 of 84
Overall 50 45 36
  • JBHT ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • SAIA ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • KNX ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodJBHTSAIAKNXSPY
1 month -3.7%-3.4%-8.9% -1.0%
3 months -21.6%-21.6%-15.5% +2.9%
6 months -9.1%-24.9%-6.1% +6.4%
Year to date +16.3%+1.7%+17.1% +11.4%
1 year +35.6%+13.8%+39.1% +13.1%
3 years +30.9%-12.9%+21.8% +79.4%
3 years, per year +9.4%-4.5%+6.8% +21.5%
5 years +15.5%+22.2%+8.8% +67.7%
5 years, per year +2.9%+4.1%+1.7% +10.9%
10 years +188.6%+1,034.0%+122.1% +255.2%
10 years, per year +11.2%+27.5%+8.3% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureJBHTSAIAKNXSPY
Volatility, 1Y 34.8%46.3%37.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 37.1%46.4%32.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.771.331.01 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.020.301.04 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -43.0%-60.9%-39.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -24.3%-31.8%-25.7% -2.5%
52-week high $298.41$487.14$82.45 $779.14
52-week low $158.92$250.48$41.68 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleJBHTSAIAKNX
P/E now vs peer median 31.3xmedian 16.0x 32.0xmedian 16.0x 231.8xmedian 16.0x
P/S now vs peer median 1.6xmedian 1.0x 2.6xmedian 1.0x 1.3xmedian 1.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 13.2xmedian 8.7x 14.1xmedian 8.7x 10.2xmedian 8.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 21.8xmedian 11.5x 34.7xmedian 11.5x 18.3xmedian 11.5x
P/B now vs peer median 5.8xmedian 1.2x 3.2xmedian 1.2x 1.4xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median -23.72median 0.82 -5.12median 0.82 -4.12median 0.82

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsJBHTSAIAKNX
Revenue $13.33B $3.39B $7.73B
Operating income $960.11M $374.65M $210.22M
Net income $676.07M $277.96M $43.31M
Free cash flow $966.50M $255.23M $545.27M
EPS (diluted) $7.14 $10.36 $0.26
Cash & equivalents $3.75M $84.01M $186.11M
Total debt $1.12B $596.06M $397.91M
Shares (diluted) 94.65M 26.83M 163.28M
Enterprise value $20.99B $8.57B $9.00B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricJBHTSAIAKNX
P/E 31.3x 32.0x 231.8x
P/FCF 21.8x 34.7x 18.3x
P/Operating cash flow 14.1x 14.6x 7.2x
P/S 1.6x 2.6x 1.3x
P/B 5.8x 3.2x 1.4x
P/Tangible book 5.8x 3.2x 2.0x
EV/EBITDA 13.2x 14.1x 10.2x
EV/EBIT 23.1x 23.7x 48.4x
EV/Revenue 1.7x 2.6x 1.3x
EV/FCF 23.0x 34.8x 18.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 14.9x 14.6x 7.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -23.72 -5.12 -4.12

Growth

14 metrics
MetricJBHTSAIAKNX
Revenue growth (1Y) 10.6% 4.8% 4.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 0.4% 7.4% 4.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) 16.3% -5.4% -29.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -3.6% -5.3% -33.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 18.1% -4.2% -73.7%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -4.5% -6.1% -56.1%
EPS growth (1Y) 20.8% -4.3% -74.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -1.3% -6.3% -56.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -7.2% -3.2% 70.8%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -8.5% 2.9% -1.1%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 22.4% 326.1% 1,410%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 162.1% 29.2% 9.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricJBHTSAIAKNX
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin 12.6% 18.5% 12.9%
Operating margin 7.2% 11.0% 2.7%
Pretax margin 6.7% 10.8% 0.9%
Net margin 5.1% 8.2% 0.6%
FCF margin 7.3% 7.5% 7.1%
Operating cash flow margin 11.2% 17.9% 18.0%
Return on equity 18.5% 5.4% 0.6%
Return on assets 8.4% 4.0% 0.4%
Return on invested capital 15.1% 10.2% 1.6%
Return on capital employed 14.9% 11.4% 1.9%
Asset turnover 1.7x 0.9x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.2x 2.2x 32.1x
Stock comp / revenue 0.5% – –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricJBHTSAIAKNX
Debt / assets 13.9% 2.7% 3.3%
Debt / equity 0.3x 0.0x 0.1x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.7x 0.0x 0.2x
Debt / FCF 1.2x 0.4x 0.7x
Liabilities / assets 55.1% 26.8% 41.8%
Equity / assets 44.9% 73.2% 58.2%
Interest coverage 14.2x 31.1x 1.6x
Current ratio 1.2x 1.6x 0.9x
Quick ratio 1.0x 1.4x 0.6x
Cash ratio 0.0x 0.2x 0.2x
Altman Z-score – 7.55 2.18

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricJBHTSAIAKNX
Dividend yield 0.8% – 1.3%
Net buyback yield 2.3% 0.0% -0.1%
Shareholder yield 3.1% 0.0% 1.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusJBHTSAIAKNX
Forward P/E 32.0xFY2026 31.2xFY2026 28.3xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $7.07FY2026 $10.63FY2026 $2.16FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +15.5%FY2026 +16.7%FY2026 +71.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +34.1% +28.5% +99.1%
Revenue, next fiscal year $13.23BFY2026 $3.87BFY2026 $7.83BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +10.2%FY2026 +19.9%FY2026 +4.9%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +16.5% -5.5% +6.2%
JBHT estimates →SAIA estimates →KNX estimates →

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersJBHTSAIAKNX
Held by institutions 76.9% 100.0% 100.0%
Institutions holding 856 513 628
Change in shares held, QoQ +1.8% +1.0% +1.9%
Institutions buying 515 292 376
Institutions selling 233 152 168
Buyers to sellers 2.21 1.92 2.24
JBHT holders →SAIA holders →KNX holders →

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

JBHTSAIAKNX
JBHT 1.00 0.71 0.77
SAIA 0.71 1.00 0.73
KNX 0.77 0.73 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry
JBHT · Trucking
+ODFLOld Dominion Freight Line +XPOXpo +FDXFFedEx Freight Holding Company +TFIITFI International +SNDRSchneider National +ARCBArcbest +WERNWerner Enterprises +MRTNMarten Transport
Plot all 40 Trucking stocks →

Related Comparisons

JBHT vs ODFLOld Dominion Freight Line JBHT vs XPOXpo JBHT vs FDXFFedEx Freight Holding Company JBHT vs TFIITFI International

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, JBHT, SAIA and KNX?

Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) $21.02B, Saia (SAIA) $8.75B, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) $9.82B.

Which stock is cheaper, JBHT, SAIA and KNX?

Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 31.1x, Saia (SAIA) 31.5x, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) 228.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) is cheapest (Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 32.0x, Saia (SAIA) 31.2x, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) 28.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) +10.6%, Saia (SAIA) +4.8%, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) +4.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Saia (SAIA) has the highest net margin (Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 5.1%, Saia (SAIA) 8.2%, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) 0.6%). On return on invested capital, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) leads (Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 15.1%, Saia (SAIA) 10.2%, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) 1.6%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) returned the most: Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) +35.6%, Saia (SAIA) +13.8%, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) +39.1%. Over five years, Saia (SAIA) compounded fastest (Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) +2.9%/yr, Saia (SAIA) +4.1%/yr, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) +1.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) has been the steadiest (Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) 34.8%, Saia (SAIA) 46.3%, Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings (KNX) 37.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, JBHT, SAIA and KNX?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Hunt J B Transport Services (JBHT) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.