Is Marten Transport Ltd. overvalued or undervalued?

As of 19 September 2025, Marten Transport Ltd. has moved from a very expensive valuation to a fair valuation. The company appears to be fairly valued based on its current metrics, despite a relatively high P/E ratio of 49 compared to peers like J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. at 40.85 and Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings, Inc. at 45.62. Additionally, Marten's EV to EBITDA stands at 7.73, which is lower than J.B. Hunt's 15.49, indicating a more favorable valuation in terms of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.
The company's dividend yield is notably high at 184.18%, but its ROCE and ROE are quite low at 2.94% and 2.82%, respectively, which raises concerns about overall profitability. In terms of stock performance, Marten has underperformed significantly against the S&P 500, with a year-to-date return of -29.08% compared to the S&P 500's 13.31%. This trend of underperformance over multiple periods suggests that while the valuation has improved, investor sentiment remains cautious.