Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) & Neutron (NASDAQ:LIME) Financial Survey

Neutron (NASDAQ:LIME) and Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings and institutional ownership.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Neutron and Heartland Express”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Neutron	$129.01 million	13.12	-$55.96 million	($0.01)	-2,605.00
Heartland Express	$805.71 million	1.05	-$52.45 million	($0.28)	-39.11

Heartland Express has higher revenue and earnings than Neutron. Neutron is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Heartland Express, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

53.4% of Heartland Express shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.8% of Neutron shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 41.6% of Heartland Express shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Neutron and Heartland Express, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Neutron	0	2	9	0	2.82
Heartland Express	3	3	1	0	1.71

Neutron presently has a consensus target price of $38.86, suggesting a potential upside of 49.16%. Heartland Express has a consensus target price of $13.00, suggesting a potential upside of 18.72%. Given Neutron’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Neutron is more favorable than Heartland Express.

Profitability

This table compares Neutron and Heartland Express’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Neutron	N/A	N/A	N/A
Heartland Express	-2.98%	-0.92%	-0.58%

Summary

Neutron beats Heartland Express on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Neutron

Lime is the largest global shared micromobility business. We are on a mission to build a future where transportation is shared, affordable, and carbon-free. Lime provides convenient and reliable short-term rentals of e-scooters and e-bikes at an affordable price. As of December 31, 2025, we operated in approximately 230 cities(1) across 29 countries(2). In 2025, we delivered a seamless rider experience to approximately 19 million riders. Our market leadership and scale have made Lime a widely recognized brand — valued by riders for our availability and trusted by cities for our operating track record. This leadership and scale have also yielded favorable unit economics, enabling us to continue investing in our growth. Lime has revolutionized the shared micromobility industry through our vertically integrated platform, which combines our proprietary hardware and software, data, tech-enabled operations, and government relations expertise. Our vertical integration allows us to maintain control of key aspects of our service and is designed to accelerate rider adoption, boost usage frequency, facilitate regulatory compliance, and optimize cost efficiency — fueling sustainable growth while solidifying trusted partnerships with cities and positioning us as a leader in the shared micromobility industry. Our platform creates a self-reinforcing, virtuous network effect that aligns value for riders and city priorities: more riders using our service enables cities to meet their local policy goals faster, which encourages cities to expand shared micromobility programs and invest in additional infrastructure, which in turn enhances the rider experience and attracts even more riders. What started as convenience enjoyed by individual riders has, through our platform, reshaped how people move around cities, which demonstrates that shared micromobility isn’t just viable but can be an essential component of urban life. The extensive presence of our electric vehicles in cities around the world has established our brand with the public, reinforcing our leadership position in the shared micromobility industry. Each of our e-scooters and e-bikes serves as mobile advertisements within the cities in which we operate, continuously reinforcing brand recognition. Our reach is further amplified through our network partnerships, including our mutually exclusive partnership with Uber. Lime vehicles are featured as a ride option within the Uber app in nearly all of our shared markets, providing Lime with direct access to Uber’s global user base. Revenue generated through our partnership with Uber was approximately 14.1%, 15.8%, and 14.3% of total revenue in 2023, 2024, and 2025, respectively, and was approximately 14.0% for the three months ended March 31, 2026. We believe our platform, combined with our global scale, market leadership, brand awareness, efficient operating model, and network partnerships creates significant competitive advantages, which has positioned us as a leader in the shared micromobility industry, has fueled sustained growth over time, and has contributed to our significant market share. We calculate our market share primarily using data for monthly active app users (“MAAUs”) from Sensor Tower (as defined below) for each of the countries we operated in and supplementing with publicly available information and our internal data. Our principal executive offices are located in San Francisco, California.

About Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services. The company offers its services under the Heartland Express and Millis Transfer brand names. It primarily serves retailers and manufacturers in consumer goods, appliances, food products, and automotive industries. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa.