Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $37.87, but opened at $34.40. Werner Enterprises shares last traded at $35.0660, with a volume of 144,720 shares changing hands.

The transportation company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.04). Werner Enterprises had a net margin of 0.85% and a return on equity of 0.14%. The firm had revenue of $737.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $767.51 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.08 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 5th were issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, January 5th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Werner Enterprises’s dividend payout ratio is 136.59%.

Trending Headlines about Werner Enterprises

Here are the key news stories impacting Werner Enterprises this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management said dedicated revenue grew, supported by a larger fleet and customer retention; the FirstFleet buy is intended to accelerate sustainable dedicated growth. Werner Enterprises Reports Fourth Quarter and Annual 2025 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts and industry commentators view the FirstFleet acquisition as a strategic move that could spark consolidation in dedicated trucking and create scale benefits if integration goes as planned. Will Werner’s $245M FirstFleet buy signal new era of dedicated trucking consolidation?
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst price-target update raised the target (reported as a 12.69% increase), reflecting some bullish reassessment after the acquisition and operational commentary. Werner Enterprises (WERN) price target increased by 12.69% to 32.35
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript and slide deck provide management detail on results, integration plans and near-term outlook — useful for investors assessing guidance and execution risk. Werner Enterprises, Inc. (WERN) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Company presentation (Q4 results) lays out segment performance and integration rationale — important context but outcome depends on execution. Werner Enterprises, Inc. 2025 Q4 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation
• Negative Sentiment: WERN missed both EPS and revenue estimates for Q4 (EPS $0.05 vs. $0.09; revenue short of consensus) and reported year-over-year revenue decline — a near-term negative for sentiment and valuation multiples. Werner Enterprises (WERN) Misses Q4 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and reporters warn the FirstFleet acquisition could pressure near-term earnings and will be an execution test for valuation — watch integration costs and accretion timing. Werner faces earnings test as FirstFleet deal reshapes strategy
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing legal overhang: a long-running drivers’ lawsuit has a settlement ready to go, creating potential cash/legal exposure to monitor. Werner settlement ready to go in drivers’ lawsuit that dates to 2014

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on WERN shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Werner Enterprises from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $31.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Werner Enterprises in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Werner Enterprises from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $22.00 to $34.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $27.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $32.36.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Werner Enterprises

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Werner Enterprises by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,514,200 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $195,491,000 after acquiring an additional 90,480 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Werner Enterprises by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,791,148 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $99,782,000 after purchasing an additional 24,204 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,058,938 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $80,511,000 after purchasing an additional 165,233 shares in the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. raised its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 2,750,034 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $82,529,000 after purchasing an additional 120,343 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 5.4% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,404,508 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $63,287,000 after buying an additional 123,513 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.32% of the company’s stock.

Werner Enterprises Price Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $31.78 and a 200 day moving average of $28.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The company has a market capitalization of $2.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 86.44, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.08.

About Werner Enterprises

Werner Enterprises, Inc, founded in 1956 by Clarence L. “Chris” Werner, is a leading transportation and logistics provider based in Omaha, Nebraska. The company began as a one‐truck operation and has since grown into one of North America’s largest carriers, offering an array of services to support diverse supply chains.

Werner’s core business activities include full truckload dry van services, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal transport and brokerage solutions. The company also provides value-added services such as warehousing, freight management and fleet maintenance through its network of terminals and service centers.