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Covenant Logistics Group (CVLG)
NYSE:CVLG
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Covenant Logistics Group (CVLG) AI Stock Analysis

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CVLG

Covenant Logistics Group

(NYSE:CVLG)

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Neutral 53 (OpenAI - 5.2)
Rating:53Neutral
Price Target:
$45.00
â–²(108.24% Upside)
Action:Reiterated
Date:06/10/26
The score is held back primarily by weakened profitability/returns and an expensive valuation (very high P/E). Support comes from solid cash generation and improved leverage, with technicals showing strong trend but stretched momentum, and the latest call pointing to sequential improvement in 2026 but with notable cost and margin headwinds.
Positive Factors
Strong operating cash generation and FCF recovery
Consistent positive operating cash flow (~$85M–$159M historically; ~$118M TTM) and a swing to +$139.8M free cash flow demonstrate durable cash-generation capacity. This supports capex, deleveraging, dividends and strategic investment even if margins remain pressured.
Negative Factors
Compressed profitability and weak returns
Margins and returns have deteriorated meaningfully (net margin near break-even, ROE down to ~1.2% TTM), reducing the company’s ability to compound equity value. Persistent low profitability undermines reinvestment, dividend sustainability and resilience to rising costs absent a durable margin recovery.
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Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Strong operating cash generation and FCF recovery
Consistent positive operating cash flow (~$85M–$159M historically; ~$118M TTM) and a swing to +$139.8M free cash flow demonstrate durable cash-generation capacity. This supports capex, deleveraging, dividends and strategic investment even if margins remain pressured.
Read all positive factors

Covenant Logistics Group Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Any
Any
Revenue By Segment
Revenue By Segment
Shows how much revenue each business segment generates, highlighting which areas drive growth and profitability for the company.
Chart InsightsCovenant Logistics Group's Dedicated segment shows robust growth, driven by a strategic expansion of its fleet and new business wins, despite overall challenges. However, the Expedited and Truckload segments face margin pressures due to inflation and high claims expenses, as highlighted in the earnings call. Managed Freight saw sequential setbacks from customer loss, while Warehousing experienced revenue declines. The company's increased indebtedness and a soft freight market pose risks, but management remains optimistic about future capacity constraints and regulatory impacts potentially boosting market conditions.
Data provided by:The Fly

Covenant Logistics Group (CVLG) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)

Covenant Logistics Group Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description
Covenant Logistics Group, Inc. and its affiliated entities deliver extensive transportation and logistics solutions throughout the United States. The company's operations are divided into four main segments: Expedited, Dedicated, Managed Freight, ...
How the Company Makes Money
Covenant Logistics Group makes money primarily by selling transportation capacity and logistics services to shippers under contractual and transactional arrangements. Key revenue streams typically include: (1) Truckload transportation revenue earn...

Covenant Logistics Group Earnings Call Summary

Earnings Call Date:Apr 23, 2026
(Q1-2026)
|
% Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Jul 29, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Neutral
The call conveyed cautious optimism: there are clear top-line and balance-sheet positives (revenue up 15.9%, net debt reduced by ~$51M, stronger pipeline and early Q2 demand improvement) and operational wins in Dedicated, Managed Freight and Warehouse revenue growth. However, near-term profitability is pressured (consolidated adjusted operating income down 11.5%, Expedited adjusted operating ratio 99.1%, ROIC down to 5%), with material headwinds from weather, fuel, driver pay inflation, elevated brokerage costs and equipment cost/timing that could offset some rate improvements. Management expects sequential quarterly improvement through 2026 but acknowledges several risks that temper near-term margin recovery.
Positive Updates
Consolidated Revenue Growth
Consolidated freight revenue increased 15.9% year-over-year (≈$38.7M) to $281.9M in Q1 2026, driven in part by assets acquired in Q4 2025 (operating as Star Logistics Solutions).
Negative Updates
Adjusted Operating Income Decline
Consolidated adjusted operating income fell 11.5% year-over-year to $9.6M in Q1 2026, primarily due to margin compression in the Expedited segment driven by weather and higher fuel costs.
Read all updates
Q1-2026 Updates
Negative
Consolidated Revenue Growth
Consolidated freight revenue increased 15.9% year-over-year (≈$38.7M) to $281.9M in Q1 2026, driven in part by assets acquired in Q4 2025 (operating as Star Logistics Solutions).
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
Covenant guided that 2026 should be a transition year with sequential quarterly improvement as rate and lane gains secured in Q1 begin to show up in Q2, citing Q1 consolidated freight revenue up 15.9% (~$38.7M) to $281.9M while consolidated adjusted operating income fell 11.5% to $9.6M; net indebtedness fell ~ $51M to $245.3M (adjusted leverage ~1.8x; debt-to-capital 37.6%), average tractor age rose to 26 months from 20 months, and trailing-4-quarter ROA was 5% versus 7.6% a year ago. Segment targets and metrics include Expedited adjusted operating ratio of 99.1% (with line-of-sight to sequential improvement), Dedicated 95.5% (improved from 98.1%) with a goal to restore double‑digit adjusted operating margins, Managed Freight aiming for mid-single‑digit adjusted operating margin, Warehouse revenue +14.6% with a target of high‑single‑digit margin, and TEL contribution of $3.7M pretax; they warned equipment deliveries could modestly raise leverage, expect $7k–$10k average new truck cost increases, see used equipment markets bottoming, and signaled driver‑pay pressure (mid‑single‑digits, possibly high single‑digits) that may consume roughly 30–40% of early rate increases (leaving ~60–70% to flow to the bottom absent other inflation).

Covenant Logistics Group Financial Statement Overview

Summary
Stable revenue and improved leverage are positives, and operating cash flow remains solid with TTM free cash flow sharply better. However, profitability and returns have deteriorated materially (very thin TTM net margin and low ROE), making the financial profile dependent on a margin recovery.
Income Statement
44
Neutral
Balance Sheet
60
Neutral
Cash Flow
57
Neutral
BreakdownTTMDec 2025Dec 2024Dec 2023Dec 2022Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue1.20B1.16B1.13B1.10B1.22B1.05B
Gross Profit153.89M93.31M189.65M164.20M185.99M147.28M
EBITDA111.12M116.87M146.00M150.15M203.39M135.82M
Net Income5.10M7.24M35.92M55.23M108.68M60.73M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets1.02B1.10B997.57M954.44M796.64M651.66M
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments11.24M4.95M35.62M2.29M68.67M8.41M
Total Debt291.75M338.70M296.89M293.46M179.63M74.25M
Total Liabilities609.22M694.33M559.23M551.02M419.52M301.96M
Stockholders Equity407.60M404.00M438.34M403.42M377.13M349.70M
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow139.84M-33.92M-30.07M-132.77M58.76M37.93M
Operating Cash Flow117.78M113.65M122.89M84.84M159.23M73.22M
Investing Cash Flow-91.76M-140.06M-107.67M-235.92M-86.21M10.34M
Financing Cash Flow-26.02M-4.26M18.11M84.71M-12.77M-83.56M

Covenant Logistics Group Technical Analysis

Technical Analysis Sentiment
Positive
Last Price21.61
Price Trends
50DMA
35.95
Positive
100DMA
31.65
Positive
200DMA
26.76
Positive
Market Momentum
MACD
2.62
Positive
RSI
57.75
Neutral
STOCH
34.96
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For CVLG, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 21.61 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 41.85, below the 50-day MA of 35.95, and below the 200-day MA of 26.76, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 2.62 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 57.75 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 34.96 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for CVLG.

Covenant Logistics Group Risk Analysis

Covenant Logistics Group disclosed 42 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Covenant Logistics Group reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks

Covenant Logistics Group Peers Comparison

Overall Rating
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (63)
Financial Indicators
Name
Overall Rating
Market Cap
P/E Ratio
ROE
Dividend Yield
Revenue Growth
EPS Growth
63
Neutral
$10.79B15.437.44%2.01%2.89%-14.66%
58
Neutral
$3.56B58.254.30%0.62%-1.65%-67.84%
57
Neutral
$1.19B-25.57-5.66%0.87%-23.49%-54.25%
55
Neutral
$1.42B93.321.89%2.07%-7.81%-33.01%
54
Neutral
$2.53B-279.17-0.62%1.84%3.28%-154.33%
53
Neutral
$1.11B208.051.23%1.23%7.15%-87.09%
46
Neutral
$428.77M-3.82-18.94%2.76%-11.11%-231.01%
* Industrials Sector Average
Performance Comparison
Ticker
Company Name
Price
Change
% Change
CVLG
Covenant Logistics Group
42.27
19.66
86.97%
HTLD
Heartland Express
14.33
5.69
65.82%
MRTN
Marten Transport
16.59
3.97
31.45%
WERN
Werner Enterprises
39.88
12.42
45.25%
ARCB
ArcBest
145.85
78.02
115.03%
ULH
Universal Logistics
15.85
-8.18
-34.05%

Covenant Logistics Group Corporate Events

Business Operations and StrategyExecutive/Board ChangesDividendsShareholder Meetings
Covenant Logistics Adopts 2026 Executive Incentive Plan
Positive
May 15, 2026
On May 13, 2026, Covenant Logistics Group’s board Compensation Committee approved a 2026 Long-Term Incentive Plan for named executives, splitting awards between performance-based restricted stock units and time-vested cash, with CEO David R....
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.

Disclaimer

This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.Date of analysis: Jun 10, 2026