Looking back on ground transportation stocks’ Q4 earnings, we examine this quarter’s best and worst performers, including Ryder (NYSE: R) and its peers.

The growth of e-commerce and global trade continues to drive demand for shipping services, especially last-mile delivery, presenting opportunities for ground transportation companies. The industry continues to invest in data, analytics, and autonomous fleets to optimize efficiency and find the most cost-effective routes. Despite the essential services this industry provides, ground transportation companies are still at the whim of economic cycles. Consumer spending, for example, can greatly impact the demand for these companies’ offerings while fuel costs can influence profit margins.

The 15 ground transportation stocks we track reported a softer Q4. As a group, revenues missed analysts’ consensus estimates by 0.8%.

Thankfully, share prices of the companies have been resilient as they are up 7.3% on average since the latest earnings results.

Ryder (NYSE: R)

As one of the first companies to introduce the idea of leasing trucks, Ryder (NYSE: R) provides rental vehicles to businesses and delivers packages directly to homes or businesses.

Ryder reported revenues of $3.18 billion, flat year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 0.7%. Overall, it was a slower quarter for the company with full-year EPS guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly and EPS guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations significantly.

Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 2.9% since reporting and currently trades at $206.14.

Read our full report on Ryder here, it’s free.

Best Q4: XPO (NYSE: XPO)

Owning a mobile game simulating freight operations for the Tour de France, XPO (NYSE: XPO) is a transportation company specializing in expedited shipping services.

XPO reported revenues of $2.01 billion, up 4.7% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 2.9%. The business had an exceptional quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ revenue estimates.

XPO pulled off the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 11.7% since reporting. It currently trades at $200.56.

Is now the time to buy XPO? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q4: Werner (NASDAQ: WERN)

Conducting business in over a 100 countries, Werner (NASDAQ: WERN) offers full-truckload, less-than-truckload, and intermodal delivery services.

Werner reported revenues of $737.6 million, down 2.3% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 2.8%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ revenue estimates and a significant miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

As expected, the stock is down 20.5% since the results and currently trades at $30.11.

Read our full analysis of Werner’s results here.

Landstar (NASDAQ: LSTR)

Covering billions of miles throughout North America, Landstar (NASDAQ: LSTR) is a transportation company specializing in freight and last-mile delivery services.

Landstar reported revenues of $1.18 billion, down 2.9% year on year. This print missed analysts’ expectations by 1.4%. It was a slower quarter as it also recorded a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates and a slight miss of analysts’ revenue estimates.

The stock is up 6.4% since reporting and currently trades at $163.27.

Read our full, actionable report on Landstar here, it’s free.

Hertz (NASDAQ: HTZ)

Started with a dozen Model T Fords, Hertz (NASDAQ: HTZ) is a global car rental company providing vehicle rental services to leisure and business travelers.

Hertz reported revenues of $2.03 billion, flat year on year. This result topped analysts’ expectations by 1.5%. Taking a step back, it was a slower quarter as it recorded a significant miss of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates and a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

The stock is up 15.2% since reporting and currently trades at $5.09.

Read our full, actionable report on Hertz here, it’s free.

Market Update

Late in 2025 into early 2026, there was hand wringing around artificial intelligence. For software companies, the fear was that AI would erode pricing power and compress margins as new tools made it easier to replicate what once required expensive enterprise platforms. Crypto investors had their own version of the same anxiety: if AI agents could trade, allocate capital, and manage wallets autonomously, what exactly was the long-term value of today’s crypto infrastructure?

These concerns triggered a noticeable rotation away from these sectors and into safer havens. But markets rarely dwell on one narrative for long. Spring 2026 came, and the focus shifted abruptly from technological disruption to geopolitical risk. The US’ conflict with Iran became the dominant driver of market psychology, and when geopolitics takes center stage, the script changes quickly. Investors stop debating growth rates and start worrying about oil supply, inflation, and global stability.

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