Revenue growth has trended downward to -8.8% in 2026Q1, while operating margins have compressed significantly to 0.1% due to persistent cost pressures.
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 | Dec'17 | Dec'16 | Dec'15 | Dec'14 | Dec'13 | Dec'12 | Dec'11 | Dec'10 | Dec'09 | Dec'08 | Dec'07 | Dec'06 | Dec'05 | Dec'04 | Dec'03 | Dec'02 | Dec'01 | Dec'00 | Dec'99 | Dec'98 | Dec'97 | Dec'96 |
|---|
| Sales/Revenue | 864.03M | 883.65M | 963.71M | 1.13B | 1.26B | 973.64M | 874.37M | 843.27M | 787.59M | 698.12M | 671.14M | 664.99M | 672.93M | 659.21M | 638.46M | 603.68M | 516.92M | 505.87M | 607.1M | 560.02M | 518.89M | 460.2M | 380.05M | 334.67M | 293.1M | 282.76M | 260.8M | 219.2M | 193.65M | 172.41M | 146.15M |
| Revenue Growth % | -7.81% | -8.31% | -14.83% | -10.48% | 29.81% | 11.35% | 3.69% | 7.07% | 12.82% | 4.02% | 0.92% | -1.18% | 2.08% | 3.25% | 5.76% | 16.78% | 2.18% | -16.67% | 8.41% | 7.93% | 12.75% | 21.09% | 13.56% | 14.18% | 3.65% | 8.42% | 18.98% | 13.2% | 12.32% | 17.97% | 6.13% |
| Cost of Goods Sold | 835.73M | 833.16M | 833.01M | 942.72M | 1.03B | 790.49M | 703.61M | 696.32M | 647.73M | 576.56M | 555.98M | 550.71M | 570.14M | 563.08M | 551.93M | 521.41M | 443.99M | 204.91M | 276.63M | 246.71M | 309.65M | 269.08M | 223.21M | 193.41M | 173.3M | 160.75M | 143.55M | 119M | 100.59M | 89.48M | 79.76M |
| COGS % of Revenue | - | 94.29% | 86.44% | 83.32% | 81.13% | 81.19% | 80.47% | 82.57% | 82.24% | 82.59% | 82.84% | 82.81% | 84.73% | 85.42% | 86.45% | 86.37% | 85.89% | 40.51% | 45.57% | 44.05% | 59.67% | 58.47% | 58.73% | 57.79% | 59.13% | 56.85% | 55.04% | 54.29% | 51.94% | 51.9% | 54.57% |
| Gross Profit | 28.3M | 50.49M | 130.7M | 188.73M | 238.5M | 183.15M | 170.76M | 146.95M | 139.87M | 121.56M | 115.17M | 114.28M | 102.78M | 96.14M | 86.53M | 82.26M | 72.93M | 300.97M | 330.47M | 313.31M | 209.24M | 191.13M | 156.84M | 141.26M | 119.8M | 122.01M | 117.25M | 100.2M | 93.06M | 82.93M | 66.39M |
| Gross Margin % | 3.28% | 5.71% | 13.56% | 16.68% | 18.87% | 18.81% | 19.53% | 17.43% | 17.76% | 17.41% | 17.16% | 17.19% | 15.27% | 14.58% | 13.55% | 13.63% | 14.11% | 59.49% | 54.43% | 55.95% | 40.33% | 41.53% | 41.27% | 42.21% | 40.87% | 43.15% | 44.96% | 45.71% | 48.06% | 48.1% | 45.43% |
| Gross Profit Growth % | - | -61.37% | -30.75% | -20.87% | 30.22% | 7.25% | 16.2% | 5.07% | 15.06% | 5.55% | 0.77% | 11.19% | 6.92% | 11.11% | 5.18% | 12.8% | -75.77% | -8.93% | 5.48% | 49.73% | 9.48% | 21.86% | 11.03% | 17.91% | -1.81% | 4.06% | 17.01% | 7.67% | 12.22% | 24.9% | -4.6% |
| Operating Expenses | 23.14M | 39.64M | 97.48M | 98.62M | 95.15M | 71.46M | 77.52M | 70.45M | 69.52M | 64.69M | 56.86M | 53.22M | 51.78M | 44.14M | 40.67M | 39.23M | 37.64M | 271.61M | 297.77M | 285.5M | 168.07M | 148.26M | 125.49M | 120.92M | 107.94M | 106.91M | 98.56M | 82.52M | 76.72M | 70.08M | 60.23M |
| OpEx % of Revenue | - | 4.49% | 10.12% | 8.72% | 7.53% | 7.34% | 8.87% | 8.35% | 8.83% | 9.27% | 8.47% | 8% | 7.69% | 6.7% | 6.37% | 6.5% | 7.28% | 53.69% | 49.05% | 50.98% | 32.39% | 32.22% | 33.02% | 36.13% | 36.83% | 37.81% | 37.79% | 37.64% | 39.62% | 40.65% | 41.21% |
| Selling, General & Admin | 33.6M | 8.75M | 62.14M | 66.16M | 59.69M | 50.34M | 55.47M | 45.91M | 45.29M | 44.63M | 38.51M | 35.14M | 33.04M | 28.89M | 25.66M | 22.77M | 20.54M | 173.71M | 193.18M | 190.35M | 165.56M | 145.49M | 125.91M | 116.23M | 104.81M | 96.56M | 80.96M | 68.75M | 62.48M | 56.28M | 57.02M |
| SG&A % of Revenue | - | 0.99% | 6.45% | 5.85% | 4.72% | 5.17% | 6.34% | 5.44% | 5.75% | 6.39% | 5.74% | 5.28% | 4.91% | 4.38% | 4.02% | 3.77% | 3.97% | 34.34% | 31.82% | 33.99% | 31.91% | 31.61% | 33.13% | 34.73% | 35.76% | 34.15% | 31.04% | 31.37% | 32.26% | 32.64% | 39.02% |
| Research & Development | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| R&D % of Revenue | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Operating Expenses | 2M | 30.89M | 35.34M | 32.46M | 35.46M | 21.13M | 22.05M | 24.54M | 24.23M | 20.06M | 18.35M | 18.08M | 18.74M | 15.25M | 15.02M | 16.46M | 17.11M | 97.9M | 104.59M | 95.15M | 2.52M | 2.77M | -420K | 4.69M | 3.13M | 10.35M | 17.6M | 13.76M | 14.24M | 13.8M | 3.21M |
| Operating Income | 5.16M | 10.85M | 33.22M | 90.11M | 143.34M | 111.69M | 93.25M | 76.5M | 70.35M | 56.86M | 58.3M | 61.06M | 51.01M | 51.99M | 45.85M | 43.03M | 35.29M | 29.36M | 32.7M | 27.8M | 41.17M | 42.87M | 31.34M | 20.34M | 11.86M | 15.11M | 18.69M | 17.69M | 16.34M | 12.85M | 6.16M |
| Operating Margin % | 0.6% | 1.23% | 3.45% | 7.96% | 11.34% | 11.47% | 10.66% | 9.07% | 8.93% | 8.14% | 8.69% | 9.18% | 7.58% | 7.89% | 7.18% | 7.13% | 6.83% | 5.8% | 5.39% | 4.96% | 7.93% | 9.31% | 8.25% | 6.08% | 4.05% | 5.34% | 7.17% | 8.07% | 8.44% | 7.45% | 4.21% |
| Operating Income Growth % | - | -67.35% | -63.13% | -37.14% | 28.34% | 19.78% | 21.89% | 8.74% | 23.72% | -2.47% | -4.52% | 19.72% | -1.9% | 13.4% | 6.56% | 21.94% | 20.2% | -10.23% | 17.64% | -32.47% | -3.96% | 36.76% | 54.14% | 71.45% | -21.49% | -19.18% | 5.68% | 8.2% | 27.23% | 108.56% | -45.86% |
| EBITDA | 108.09M | 116.24M | 144.87M | 206.83M | 254.36M | 214.25M | 196.14M | 171.63M | 158.93M | 141.98M | 140.75M | 136.39M | 119.25M | 116.47M | 106.76M | 100.56M | 87.2M | 82.43M | 82.41M | 74.81M | 85.53M | 81.1M | 64.1M | 50.38M | 39.57M | 42.1M | 43.84M | 38.31M | 35.07M | 30.09M | 22.18M |
| EBITDA Margin % | 12.51% | 13.15% | 15.03% | 18.28% | 20.13% | 22.01% | 22.43% | 20.35% | 20.18% | 20.34% | 20.97% | 20.51% | 17.72% | 17.67% | 16.72% | 16.66% | 16.87% | 16.29% | 13.57% | 13.36% | 16.48% | 17.62% | 16.87% | 15.05% | 13.5% | 14.89% | 16.81% | 17.48% | 18.11% | 17.45% | 15.17% |
| EBITDA Growth % | -21.35% | -19.77% | -29.96% | -18.68% | 18.72% | 9.23% | 14.28% | 7.99% | 11.94% | 0.88% | 3.2% | 14.37% | 2.39% | 9.1% | 6.16% | 15.32% | 5.8% | 0.02% | 10.16% | -12.53% | 5.47% | 26.51% | 27.23% | 27.33% | -6.01% | -3.99% | 14.45% | 9.24% | 16.56% | 35.68% | -14.17% |
| D&A (Non-Cash Add-back) | 102.93M | 105.39M | 111.65M | 116.72M | 111.01M | 102.56M | 102.89M | 95.14M | 88.58M | 85.12M | 82.44M | 75.32M | 68.24M | 64.48M | 60.9M | 57.53M | 51.92M | 53.07M | 49.7M | 47.01M | 44.36M | 38.23M | 32.76M | 30.05M | 27.71M | 26.99M | 25.15M | 20.62M | 18.72M | 17.24M | 16.02M |
| EBIT | 12.48M | 24.38M | 28.25M | 76.5M | 129.97M | 95.39M | 82.8M | 67.82M | 63.1M | 51.36M | 47.8M | 51.38M | 46.62M | 46.02M | 40.55M | 39.23M | 34.18M | 69.15M | 32.89M | 27.69M | 41.17M | -226.21M | -191.87M | -173.07M | 11.86M | 282.76M | 6.13M | -101.31M | -84.24M | -76.64M | -73.6M |
| Net Interest Income | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48K | -24K | 26K | -32K | -958K | -3.13M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Income | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48K | 0 | 26K | 137K | 184K | 693K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Interest Expense | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24K | 0 | 169K | 1.14M | 3.82M | 3.56M | 2.36M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.11M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Income/Expense | 15.06M | 13.53M | 3.13M | 3.81M | 827K | 43K | 140K | 1.19M | 681K | -389K | -1.24M | -372K | 667K | 392K | 48K | 24K | 26K | -616K | -958K | -3.93M | -3.23M | -1.38M | -581K | -1.24M | -2.23M | -4.6M | -5.9M | -3.82M | -3.72M | -4M | -3.44M |
| Pretax Income | 20.22M | 24.38M | 36.35M | 93.92M | 144.17M | 111.73M | 93.39M | 77.69M | 71.03M | 56.47M | 57.07M | 60.69M | 51.67M | 52.39M | 45.9M | 43.05M | 34.68M | 28.74M | 30.63M | 23.87M | 37.94M | 41.49M | 30.71M | 19.1M | 9.63M | 10.51M | 12.79M | 13.86M | 12.62M | 8.85M | 2.72M |
| Pretax Margin % | 2.34% | 2.76% | 3.77% | 8.3% | 11.41% | 11.48% | 10.68% | 9.21% | 9.02% | 8.09% | 8.5% | 9.13% | 7.68% | 7.95% | 7.19% | 7.13% | 6.71% | 5.68% | 5.04% | 4.26% | 7.31% | 9.01% | 8.08% | 5.71% | 3.29% | 3.72% | 4.9% | 6.32% | 6.52% | 5.13% | 1.86% |
| Income Tax | 5.73M | 6.93M | 9.42M | 23.54M | 33.82M | 26.3M | 23.89M | 16.62M | 16M | -33.81M | 23.6M | 24.95M | 21.84M | 22.16M | 18.14M | 17.96M | 14.94M | 12.48M | 12.56M | 8.9M | 13.43M | 16.43M | 13.18M | 7.26M | 3.66M | 3.99M | 4.86M | 5.41M | 5.05M | 3.54M | 1.09M |
| Effective Tax Rate % | 28.33% | 28.44% | 25.93% | 25.07% | 23.46% | 23.54% | 25.58% | 21.39% | 22.53% | -59.87% | 41.36% | 41.1% | 42.26% | 42.29% | 39.51% | 41.72% | 43.08% | 43.41% | 41% | 37.29% | 35.38% | 39.59% | 42.9% | 38% | 38% | 38% | 38% | 39% | 40% | 40% | 39.99% |
| Net Income | 14.49M | 17.44M | 26.92M | 70.37M | 110.35M | 85.43M | 69.5M | 61.07M | 55.03M | 90.28M | 33.46M | 35.74M | 29.83M | 30.15M | 27.27M | 24.29M | 19.74M | 16.27M | 18.07M | 14.97M | 24.52M | 25.06M | 17.54M | 11.84M | 5.97M | 6.51M | 7.93M | 8.46M | 7.57M | 5.31M | 1.63M |
| Net Margin % | 1.68% | 1.97% | 2.79% | 6.22% | 8.73% | 8.77% | 7.95% | 7.24% | 6.99% | 12.93% | 4.99% | 5.38% | 4.43% | 4.57% | 4.27% | 4.02% | 3.82% | 3.22% | 2.98% | 2.67% | 4.73% | 5.45% | 4.61% | 3.54% | 2.04% | 2.3% | 3.04% | 3.86% | 3.91% | 3.08% | 1.12% |
| Net Income Growth % | -32.95% | -35.21% | -61.74% | -36.23% | 29.18% | 22.92% | 13.8% | 10.98% | -39.05% | 169.79% | -6.38% | 19.81% | -1.04% | 10.56% | 12.28% | 23.01% | 21.36% | -9.98% | 20.73% | -38.95% | -2.17% | 42.91% | 48.08% | 98.26% | -8.31% | -17.84% | -6.26% | 11.66% | 42.72% | 225.58% | -67.46% |
| Net Income (Continuing) | 14.49M | 17.44M | 26.92M | 70.37M | 110.35M | 85.43M | 69.5M | 61.07M | 55.03M | 90.28M | 33.46M | 35.74M | 29.83M | 30.23M | 27.76M | 25.09M | 20.37M | 29.33M | 30.63M | 15.77M | 25.29M | 25.8M | 17.59M | 11.84M | 5.97M | 6.51M | 7.93M | 8.46M | 7.57M | 5.31M | 1.63M |
| Discontinued Operations | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Minority Interest | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.56M | 2.19M | 1.91M | 1.73M | 1.72M | 1.28M | 913K | 431K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| EPS (Diluted) | 0.18 | 0.21 | 0.33 | 0.86 | 1.35 | 1.02 | 0.84 | 0.74 | 0.67 | 1.10 | 0.41 | 0.42 | 0.36 | 0.36 | 0.33 | 0.29 | 0.24 | 0.20 | 0.22 | 0.18 | 0.30 | 0.30 | 0.22 | 0.18 | 0.11 | 0.12 | 0.15 | 0.05 | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.01 |
| EPS Growth % | -32.97% | -36.36% | -61.63% | -36.3% | 32.35% | 21.43% | 13.51% | 10.45% | -39.09% | 168.29% | -2.38% | 16.67% | 0% | 9.09% | 13.79% | 20.83% | 20% | -9.09% | 22.22% | -40% | 0% | 36.36% | 22.22% | 63.64% | -8.33% | -20% | 225.38% | 16.71% | -4.82% | 226.77% | -67.52% |
| EPS (Basic) | - | 0.21 | 0.33 | 0.87 | 1.35 | 1.03 | 0.84 | 0.75 | 0.67 | 1.11 | 0.41 | 0.43 | 0.36 | 0.36 | 0.33 | 0.29 | 0.24 | 0.20 | 0.22 | 0.18 | 0.30 | 0.31 | 0.22 | 0.19 | 0.11 | 0.12 | 0.15 | 0.05 | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.01 |
| Diluted Shares Outstanding | 81.52M | 81.52M | 81.47M | 81.41M | 81.96M | 83.41M | 83.16M | 82.67M | 82.72M | 82.28M | 81.69M | 84.29M | 84.2M | 83.57M | 83.06M | 82.78M | 82.62M | 82.44M | 82.64M | 82.35M | 82.09M | 82.44M | 81.19M | 65.31M | 55.08M | 53.88M | 53.09M | 183.44M | 191.97M | 127.99M | 127.99M |
| Basic Shares Outstanding | 81.51M | 81.51M | 81.41M | 81.27M | 81.69M | 82.87M | 82.53M | 81.94M | 81.89M | 81.74M | 81.27M | 83.69M | 83.45M | 83.05M | 82.74M | 82.42M | 82.23M | 82.01M | 81.65M | 81.73M | 81.37M | 81.02M | 79.23M | 62.25M | 53.33M | 53.1M | 53.09M | 182.84M | 190.99M | 127.99M | 127.99M |
| Dividend Payout Ratio | - | 84.1% | 72.58% | 27.72% | 17.73% | 64.07% | 75.35% | 68.92% | 9.92% | 4.83% | 9.72% | 9.35% | 11.19% | 9.19% | 68.5% | 7.24% | 4.44% | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Freight market volume contraction
As indicated by the most recent quarterly data, Marten Transport has experienced a sustained decline in top-line performance, with revenue growth reaching -8.8% in 2026Q1, marking a multi-quarter trend of contraction that reflects broader challenges within the North American freight and logistics sector.
The consistent negative year-over-year revenue growth suggests that the company is struggling to maintain volume in its core asset-heavy segments. This trend appears to be driven by a combination of softening freight demand and pricing pressure, which may limit the company's ability to leverage its specialized refrigerated infrastructure effectively.
Based on the provided income statement figures, Marten Transport's gross margin has faced significant volatility, plummeting to 4.1% in 2026Q1 from historical peaks, which highlights the company's vulnerability to rising operational costs and the inability to fully pass through inflationary pressures to its customer base.
The sharp contraction in gross margins suggests that the cost of maintaining a specialized, temperature-controlled fleet is becoming increasingly difficult to absorb during a freight downturn. Investors should monitor whether this margin compression is a temporary cyclical phenomenon or a sign of eroding pricing power within the dedicated and intermodal segments.
According to the reported financial statements, Marten Transport's operating margin has compressed to a marginal 0.1% as of 2026Q1, demonstrating that the company is currently unable to scale its operating income effectively against its fixed and variable cost base during this period of revenue decline.
The lack of operating leverage suggests that the company's cost structure remains rigid despite the significant drop in top-line revenue. This indicates that management may be facing difficulty in rightsizing its fleet and labor expenses to match the current lower-demand environment, leaving little room for bottom-line protection.
While the company maintains a debt-free balance sheet, the 2025Q4 gross margin of -17.8% warrants further investigation, as it suggests that the core refrigerated business model may be more susceptible to extreme operational volatility than the company's defensive positioning in consumer staples would otherwise imply.
Short-term observers might argue that the reliance on non-discretionary food freight is insufficient to offset the high capital intensity of refrigerated assets during a prolonged freight recession. The extreme margin fluctuations observed in recent quarters suggest that the company's operational efficiency is highly sensitive to external market conditions, potentially undermining the narrative of a stable, defensive business model.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying MRTN stock.
For fiscal year 2025, Marten Transport, Ltd. (MRTN) reported total revenue of $883.7M. This represents a 504.6% increase compared to $146.2M in 1996.
Marten Transport, Ltd. (MRTN) is profitable, generating $17.4M in net income for the fiscal year ending 2025 with a net profit margin of 2.0%.
Marten Transport, Ltd. (MRTN) reported an operating income of $10.8M, resulting in an operating profit margin of 1.2%. This margin reflects the operational efficiency of the business before interest and taxes.
Marten Transport, Ltd. (MRTN) generated $50.5M in gross profit for the year, representing a gross profit margin of 5.7%. This demonstrates the company's core pricing power and production efficiency.