[X]QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15 (d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the quarterly period ended March31, 2026[]TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 to HEARTLAND EXPRESS INC.(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter) Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15 (d) of the SecuritiesExchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports)and(2)hasbeensubjecttosuchfilingrequirementsforthepast90days. Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically, every Interactive Data File required to be submittedpursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that theregistrantwasrequiredtosubmitsuchfiles). Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reportingcompany, or an emerging growth company. See definition of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,”and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act: Large accelerated filer [ ]Non-accelerated filer [ ] Accelerated filer [X]Smaller reporting company [ ]Emerging growth company [ ] If an emerging company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complyingwith any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. [] Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).Yes [ ]No [ X ] As of May6, 2026 there were 77,489,696 shares of the registrant’s common stock ($0.01 par value) outstanding. TABLE OF CONTENTS PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION Item 1. Financial StatementsConsolidated Balance Sheets as of March 31, 2026and December 31, 2025(unaudited)3Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2026 and2025(unaudited)4Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2026 and 2025(unaudited)5Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2026 and 2025(unaudited)6Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements (unaudited)7Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations14Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk22Item 4. Controls and Procedures23 PART II - OTHER INFORMATION Item 1. Legal ProceedingsItem 1A. Risk FactorsItem 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of ProceedsItem 3. Defaults Upon Senior SecuritiesItem 4. Mine Safety DisclosuresItem 5. Other InformationItem 6. Exhibits Signatures HEARTLAND EXPRESS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS(unaudited) Note 1.Basis of Presentation and New Accounting Pronouncements Heartland Express, Inc. is a holding company incorporated in Nevada, which directly or indirectly owns all of the stock of thefollowing legal entities: Heartland Express, Inc. of Iowa, Heartland Express Services, Inc., Heartland Express Maintenance Services,Inc. (collectively, "Heartland Express"), and Midwest Holding Group, LLC and Millis Transfer, LLC (together, "Millis Transfer"), andSmith Transport, LLC ("Smith Transport"), and certain Mexican entities. Effective December 31, 2025, we integrated and rebrandedU.S. operations of Contract Freighters, Inc. ("CFI") into Heartland Express. We, together with our subsidiaries, are a short, medium,and long-haul truckload carrier and transportation services provider. The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the parent company, Heartland Express, Inc., and its subsidiaries, all ofwhich are wholly owned. All material intercompany items and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. The accompanyingunaudited consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally acceptedaccounting principles ("GAAP") for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Regulation S-X.Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and notes to the financial statements required by U.S. GAAP for completefinancial statements. In the opinion of management, all normal, recurring adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation havebeen included. The consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statementsand accompanying notes for the year ended December31, 2025 included in the Annual Report on Form 10-K the Company filed withthe Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on March 3, 2026. Interim results of operations are not necessarily indi