Heartland Express (NASDAQ: HTLD) CFO granted 500 restricted shares in stock award

Rhea-AI Filing Summary

Strain Christopher Alan reported acquisition or exercise transactions in this Form 4 filing.

Heartland Express Inc reported that its Vice President, CFO, and Treasurer, Christopher Alan Strain, received a grant of 500 shares of common stock. The award was issued as restricted stock under the 2021 Restricted Stock Plan and vested immediately. Following this compensation-related award, his direct holdings increased to 21,500 shares of Heartland Express common stock.

Insider Trade Summary

1 transaction reported

Mixed 1 txn

Insider Strain Christopher Alan

Role Vice President/CFO/Treasurer

Type	Security	Shares	Price	Value
Grant/Award	Common Stock	500	$0.00	--

Holdings After Transaction: Common Stock — 21,500 shares (Direct, null)

Footnotes (1)

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Key Figures

Restricted stock grant: 500 shares Grant price per share: $0.00 per share Shares owned after grant: 21,500 shares

3 metrics

Restricted stock grant 500 shares Award of common stock under 2021 Restricted Stock Plan

Grant price per share $0.00 per share Compensation-related award, not an open-market purchase

Shares owned after grant 21,500 shares Direct holdings following the 500-share award

Key Terms

restricted shares, 2021 Restricted Stock Plan, vested immediately, grant, award, or other acquisition

4 terms

restricted shares financial

"The reporting person received 500 restricted shares of Heartland Express, Inc. common stock as an award"

Restricted shares are company stock that cannot be sold or transferred immediately because they are subject to legal or contractual limits, such as a required holding period or performance conditions. They matter to investors because these locked-up shares can affect a company’s available stock for trading, future dilution, and insider incentives—imagine a gift that can’t be cashed until certain conditions are met, which changes when and how much supply can suddenly enter the market.

2021 Restricted Stock Plan financial

"common stock as an award under the 2021 Restricted Stock Plan."

vested immediately financial

"The award vested immediately."

grant, award, or other acquisition financial

"transaction_code_description": "Grant, award, or other acquisition""

Form 4 Insider Transactions: What Each Field Means →

SEC Form 4

FORM 4

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP

Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
or Section 30(h) of the Investment Company Act of 1940

OMB APPROVAL

OMB Number:			3235-0287
Estimated average burden
hours per response:			0.5

Check this box if no longer subject to Section 16. Form 4 or Form 5 obligations may continue. See Instruction 1(b).

Check this box to indicate that a transaction was made pursuant to a contract, instruction or written plan for the purchase or sale of equity securities of the issuer that is intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c). See Instruction 10.

1. Name and Address of Reporting Person^*

Strain Christopher Alan

(Last) (First) (Middle)

901 HEARTLAND WAY

(Street)

NORTH LIBERTY IOWA 52317

(City) (State) (Zip)

UNITED STATES

(Country)

2. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol
HEARTLAND EXPRESS INC [ HTLD ]

5. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer
(Check all applicable)

	Director		10% Owner
X	Officer (give title below)		Other (specify below)
	Vice President/CFO/Treasurer

2a. Foreign Trading Symbol

3. Date of Earliest Transaction (Month/Day/Year)
05/15/2026

6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable Line)

X	Form filed by One Reporting Person
	Form filed by More than One Reporting Person

4. If Amendment, Date of Original Filed (Month/Day/Year)

Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned
1. Title of Security (Instr. 3)	2. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	2A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	3. Transaction Code (Instr. 8)		4. Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed Of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5)			5. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 3 and 4)	6. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	7. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
			Code	V	Amount	(A) or (D)	Price
Common Stock	05/15/2026		A		500(1)	A	$0	21,500	D

Table II - Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned (e.g., puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)
1. Title of Derivative Security (Instr. 3)	2. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security	3. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	3A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	4. Transaction Code (Instr. 8)		5. Number of Derivative Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5)		6. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date (Month/Day/Year)		7. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security (Instr. 3 and 4)		8. Price of Derivative Security (Instr. 5)	9. Number of derivative Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 4)	10. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	11. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
				Code	V	(A)	(D)	Date Exercisable	Expiration Date	Title	Amount or Number of Shares

Explanation of Responses:

1. The reporting person received 500 restricted shares of Heartland Express, Inc. common stock as an award under the 2021 Restricted Stock Plan. The award vested immediately.

Remarks:

	/s/ Christopher A. Strain	05/18/2026
	** Signature of Reporting Person	Date
Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly.
* If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 4 (b)(v).
** Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).
Note: File three copies of this Form, one of which must be manually signed. If space is insufficient, see Instruction 6 for procedure.
Persons who respond to the collection of information contained in this form are not required to respond unless the form displays a currently valid OMB Number.
* Form 4: SEC 1474 (03-26)

FAQ

What insider transaction did HTLD disclose for Christopher Alan Strain?

Heartland Express disclosed that Christopher Alan Strain received a grant of 500 shares of common stock as restricted stock. The award was issued as compensation under the 2021 Restricted Stock Plan and vested immediately, increasing his direct ownership to 21,500 shares.

Was the HTLD insider transaction an open-market purchase or a stock grant?

The transaction was a stock grant, not an open-market purchase. Christopher Alan Strain received 500 restricted shares at no stated purchase price under the 2021 Restricted Stock Plan, which vested immediately as part of his compensation package.

How many HTLD shares does Christopher Alan Strain hold after this Form 4 filing?

After the reported transaction, Christopher Alan Strain directly holds 21,500 shares of Heartland Express common stock. This total reflects the addition of 500 restricted shares granted and immediately vested under the company’s 2021 Restricted Stock Plan.

What is the significance of the 500 restricted HTLD shares granted to the CFO?

The 500-share grant represents a compensation award rather than a market purchase or sale. It aligns the CFO’s interests with shareholders by increasing his equity stake, with the shares granted at no stated price and vesting immediately under the 2021 Restricted Stock Plan.

Did the HTLD CFO sell any shares in this reported insider transaction?

No shares were sold in this transaction. The Form 4 shows only an acquisition of 500 restricted shares of common stock as an award, which vested immediately and increased Christopher Alan Strain’s direct holdings to 21,500 shares.