One-glance verdict
Within fair range
$131.44 our estimate vs market $172.35
Wall Street consensus: $215.43 (63.9% higher than our fair-value estimate)
31% above our estimate
Fundamentals snapshot
Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.
ODFL · NMS · Industrials · Trucking
Current price
$172.35
52-week range
$126.01 - $252.03
Market cap
$35.84B
Balance sheet
Healthy
4,598.12x Strong cushion
Net cash $446.23M. Interest coverage shows how many times profit covers the interest bill.
What stands out
3 Rewards
1 Risk
3 rewards · 1 risks
- Reward Revenue grew 5.1% last year.
- Reward Returns 26.0% on equity, ahead of 83% of its peers.
- Reward Free cash flow was positive in 10/10 years.
- Risk Operating margin compressed from 29.4% to 28.5% over 3 years.
What this company does
Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.
Old Dominion Freight Line (ODFL) is a trucking company that moves smaller, less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments for businesses across the country. Their main income comes from charging other companies to transport their goods, which is important because it means they are a key part of the supply chain (the process of moving goods from where they are made to where they are sold). This LTL service is a critical piece of how businesses get their products to customers efficiently.
How the company got here
Old Dominion Freight Line (ODFL) began in 1934 with a single truck driven by Earl and Lillian Congdon between Richmond and Norfolk, Virginia. The company's name, "Old Dominion," is a nickname for Virginia. Through the years, ODFL expanded its operations, especially during World War II, and went public in 1991. The company has grown from a small regional carrier into a major player in North American less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping, focusing on providing reliable and timely service. This growth has been fueled by strategic acquisitions and a consistent investment in its network and technology.
What it actually does
Old Dominion Freight Line is a trucking company that specializes in less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping. This means they transport smaller shipments from various customers in a single truck, consolidating them to be more efficient. Think of it like a bus service for packages and goods, where multiple businesses can send their items on the same truck. They handle everything from small boxes to larger palletized freight, ensuring it gets to its destination safely and on time. Their services are crucial for businesses that need to move goods but don't have enough to fill an entire truck.
Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) Services
This is Old Dominion's core business and what they are best known for. LTL shipping is for freight that is too large for parcel carriers (like UPS or FedEx for small packages) but not large enough to require a full truckload. Old Dominion picks up shipments from multiple customers, consolidates them at their service centers, and then transports them to their destinations. This segment represents the vast majority of the company's revenue and is the primary way they make money by efficiently moving goods for many different businesses.
Expedited Services
For customers who need their shipments to arrive faster than standard LTL service, Old Dominion offers expedited transportation. This is like paying extra for a faster delivery option, ensuring time-sensitive goods reach their destination quickly. These services are crucial for businesses that have urgent shipping needs, such as just-in-time manufacturing or critical retail inventory replenishment. This is a smaller but important part of their business, adding value for customers with specific time constraints.
Global and Other Services
Beyond their main LTL operations, Old Dominion also provides a range of related services. This includes container drayage (transporting shipping containers to and from ports or rail yards), truckload brokerage (arranging for full truckloads of goods to be shipped by other carriers), and supply chain consulting. These services complement their core LTL offerings, allowing them to provide more comprehensive logistics solutions to their business customers. While not as large as their LTL segment, these services help them build stronger relationships with clients and offer a more complete package of transportation solutions.
What management is betting on now
Old Dominion's management is focused on continuing to provide premium, reliable service to gain market share. They are heavily investing in their network, expanding service centers and upgrading their fleet of trucks and trailers to handle more volume and improve efficiency. A key strategy is maintaining strong pricing discipline, meaning they focus on the quality of the freight they haul rather than just the quantity, ensuring profitability. They are also investing in technology to enhance customer experience, offering better tracking and operational efficiency. This strategy aims to solidify their position as a leader in the LTL market by consistently delivering superior service and operational excellence.
Price history
How the share price has moved
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Earnings history
Last 8 quarters — what happened
Click any quarter to read the call summary and what the numbers say.
FY2024 Q3
$203.72M
FY2024 Q4
$230.14M
FY2025 Q1
$248.37M
FY2025 Q2
$98.68M
FY2025 Q3
$343.53M
FY2025 Q4
$264.52M
FY2026 Q1
$311.06M
FY2026 Q2
$195.66M
Revenue
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Net income
$350.60M
Diluted EPS
1.68
Operating cash flow
$272.70M
Free cash flow
$195.66M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$238.26M
Diluted EPS
1.14
Operating cash flow
$373.63M
Free cash flow
$311.06M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$229.47M
Diluted EPS
1.10
Operating cash flow
$310.29M
Free cash flow
$264.52M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$270.95M
Diluted EPS
1.28
Operating cash flow
$437.47M
Free cash flow
$343.53M
Fetching…
Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$268.63M
Diluted EPS
1.27
Operating cash flow
$285.85M
Free cash flow
$98.68M
Fetching…
Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$254.66M
Diluted EPS
1.19
Operating cash flow
$336.52M
Free cash flow
$248.37M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$263.14M
Diluted EPS
1.23
Operating cash flow
$401.06M
Free cash flow
$230.14M
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Sources
Revenue
—
Net income
$308.58M
Diluted EPS
1.43
Operating cash flow
$446.48M
Free cash flow
$203.72M
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Sources
Is it cheap or expensive?
Fair value $131.44 vs current price $172.35
Wall Street consensus is the average analyst price target: $215.43 (63.9% higher than our fair-value estimate).
Our most-likely fair value is $131.44 a share — about 23.7% away from today's price of $172.35, so the stock currently looks fairly priced.
Is it drowning in debt?
Healthy
Net cash $446.2M - more cash than debt. Interest coverage 4598.1x.
Net debt
$-446.23M
Interest coverage
4,598.12x
Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.'s profit covers its interest bill about 4598.1 times over. which is stronger than every peer shown here.
Healthy
Worse cushion
Baseline
Better cushion
ODFL
BASELINE
Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.
Total debt $20.00M Interest coverage 4,598.12x This is the baseline the peer rows are being compared against.
Total debt $269.19M Interest coverage 21.42x -100% vs ODFL Carries about 214.7x less debt cushion than ODFL.
Total debt $4.04B Interest coverage 3.33x -100% vs ODFL Carries about 1381.3x less debt cushion than ODFL.
Total debt $459.76M Interest coverage 8.06x -100% vs ODFL Carries about 570.2x less debt cushion than ODFL.
Total debt $3.05B Interest coverage 3.81x -100% vs ODFL Carries about 1207.7x less debt cushion than ODFL.
Total debt $2.61B Interest coverage 1.94x -100% vs ODFL Carries about 2366.5x less debt cushion than ODFL.
What you should know
The case for and against ODFL
3 Rewards
1 Risk
Rewards
-
Revenue grew 5.1% last year.
-
Returns 26.0% on equity, ahead of 83% of its peers.
-
Free cash flow was positive in 10/10 years.
Risks
-
Operating margin compressed from 29.4% to 28.5% over 3 years.
The numbers
All the key metrics, grouped by purpose
Tap any ? icon to learn what it means.
Valuation
How expensive the stock looks
P/E (TTM)
30.94x
Forward P/E
25.62x
P/B
7.64x
P/S
6.19x
EV/EBITDA
18.48x
PEG ratio
2.08x
Profitability
How much profit each dollar creates
Gross margin
39.9%
Operating margin
28.5%
Net margin
20.1%
ROE
26.0%
ROA
16.9%
Health
Liquidity and balance-sheet strength
Debt / equity
0.00x
Current ratio
2.04x
Quick ratio
0.80x
Total debt
$20.00M
Total cash
$466.22M
Growth
How the business has been compounding
Revenue TTM
$3.53B
Revenue 5Y CAGR
9.5%
EPS TTM
5.57
EPS 5Y CAGR
-7.4%
Cash flow
How much cash the business throws off
Operating CF TTM
$1.39B
Free CF TTM
$955.10M
FCF margin
27.1%
Dividend
Shareholder payout
Yield
0.7%
Payout ratio
21.9%
Last ex-div date
2026-12-02