Start here if you're new
what it is
Marten hauls temperature-sensitive freight for shippers across the US, Canada, and Mexico, and it has done it since 1946.
how it gets paid
Last year Marten Transport made $0.9B in revenue. Truckload was the main engine at $0.49B, or 55% of sales.
what just happened
Latest quarter revenue was $223M, down 11% vs. prior year, while EPS reached $0.17.
At a glance
B++ balance sheet — above average — nothing keeping you up at night
50/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
60.6x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
2.0% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
3.5% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 52/100 — below average
What they do
Marten hauls temperature-sensitive freight for shippers across the US, Canada, and Mexico, and it has done it since 1946.
Your food shipment cannot sit in a hot trailer. Marten hauls temperature-sensitive freight across the US, Canada, and Mexico, and truckload is the main revenue engine. The company has $0 in long-term debt, but a 3.5% return on capital means each invested dollar earns 3.5 cents of profit.
How they make money
$0.9B
annual revenue
Truckload
$0.49B
Dedicated
$0.18B
Intermodal
$0.13B
Brokerage
$0.09B
The products that matter
temperature-controlled freight hauling
Refrigerated Truckload
core freight exposure
It is part of the company’s $884M revenue base, and the snapshot ties it to 31.97% gross margin. That does not make the business high-margin — it tells you refrigerated freight is the cleaner part of the mix.
31.97% gross margin
non-refrigerated freight hauling
Dry Van Truckload
reported without separate margin
It sits inside the same $884M business, but the company does not give you a separate profitability line here. When disclosure is thin, you should assume the consolidated margin — 1.97% net — is the number that matters.
margin not broken out
Key numbers
60.6x
trailing p/e
You pay 60.6 times the last 12 months of profit. That is a luxury price for a trucker.
3.5%
return on capital
Every dollar invested earns 3.5 cents of profit. That is thin for a business that owns equipment.
$0M
long-term debt
Long-term debt is zero. You are not paying interest to fund the fleet.
2.0%
dividend yield
You get $2 a year for every $100 invested. That helps, but it does not cover a rich multiple.
Financial health
B++
strength
- balance sheet grade B++ — above average financial health
- risk rank 4 — safer than 20% of stocks
- price stability 80 / 100
- long-term debt $0M (0% of capital)
B++ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for MRTN right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
missed estimates
Latest quarter revenue was $223M, down 11% vs. prior year, while EPS reached $0.17.
EDGAR shows a weaker top line and a stronger per-share number. Yahoo's feed lists $210.11M TTM revenue and $0.19 trailing EPS, so public data do not line up cleanly.
$223M
revenue
$0.17
eps
16.3%
operating margin
revenue
Revenue mattered most because the 11% drop shows the business is still fighting freight pricing, not coasting.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
The top risk is paying a premium multiple for commodity freight economics.
high
premium valuation, thin business
The stock trades at 60.6x trailing earnings and 42.6x forward earnings while net margin sits at 1.97% and return on capital is 3.5%.
You are paying growth-stock optics for a trucking business that currently earns trucking-business returns.
high
another freight slowdown hits earnings hard
Annual revenue fell 8.3% and Q4 revenue missed expectations at $210.1M. With a 2.59% operating margin, small volume or pricing moves can hit profit disproportionately.
A weak freight tape does not need to get much worse to push earnings down sharply.
med
clean balance sheet, but no real moat
Long-term debt is $0M, which lowers financial risk. It does not create pricing power in a market where freight rates still set the ceiling.
If investors start valuing MRTN like a normal trucker instead of a scarce high-quality one, the multiple can compress even if the company stays profitable.
At 60.6x earnings, this setup assumes margin pressure fades before valuation pressure does.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
metric
operating margin versus 2%
Operating margin is 2.59% right now. If it slips below 2%, the idea that this is just a temporary freight slump gets harder to defend.
calendar
q1 2026 earnings report
Expected late April 2026. Consensus sits at $207.2M in revenue, slightly below the $210.1M reported in Q4 2025. The first question is not growth. It is whether the slide stops.
trend
revenue after the 8.3% decline
Last year’s revenue drop is the main operating fact on the page. One soft quarter is noise. A second leg down means the market is still too generous.
risk
whether the balance sheet starts doing real work
Debt-free is useful only if weaker competitors struggle while MRTN holds up better. If the company keeps posting thin profits without taking share, the balance sheet is a shield, not a catalyst.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
50 / 100
In human-speak: analysts do not have a tight handle on the earnings line, because freight pricing can move faster than forecasts.
price stability
80 / 100
The stock price has been steadier than the income statement. That can feel comforting right up until fundamentals force a reset.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for MRTN is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$13
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
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