Truck Owners Buoyed as Shipments Rise With U.S. Growth: EcoPulse

Shares of companies that own and operate their truck fleets are outperforming those that act as brokers for trucking services, driven by stronger U.S. freight activity.

Stocks of so-called asset-heavy carriers -- which include Werner Enterprises Inc. and Knight Transportation Inc. -- have until recently been weighed down by an outlook that’s “too pessimistic” for rate increases and freight volumes, said Todd Fowler, director and analyst in Cleveland with KeyBanc Capital Markets Inc., the investment banking arm of KeyCorp. This means there’s a greater potential for a positive surprise from these companies this year compared with the past three, as gains in manufacturing and housing fuel better-than-anticipated earnings growth, he said.