Old Dominion Freight Line’s ODFL fourth-quarter 2020 earnings per share of $1.61 outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.57. Moreover, the bottom line surged 34.2% year over year. This upside was driven by a record improvement in the operating ratio (operating expenses as a percentage of revenues) on the back of the company’s cost-containment efforts.Revenues of $1073.4 million surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1039.9 million and also increased 6.4% year over year on a 4.9% rise in LTL (Less-Than-Truckload) tons.Management stated in the press release that all prior-period share and per share data are adjusted to reflect the three-for-two stock split effectuated last year.Other DetailsIn the quarter under review, Old Dominion reported a 2.4% increase in LTL shipments per day. LTL revenue per hundredweight inched up 1.1%. Moreover, LTL revenue per hundredweight excluding fuel surcharges climbed 4.2%. LTL weight per shipment and LTL revenue per shipment rose 2.5% and 3.7%, respectively.Revenues from the company’s major revenue-generating segment LTL services logged a total of $1057.9 million, increasing 6.2% year over year. Revenues from other services rose 22.8% to $15.5 million. Total operating expenses decreased to $819.1 million, mainly owing to the 11.3% reduction in operating supplies and expenses.Moreover, operating ratio improved 500 basis points year over year to 76.3%. Notably, lower the value of this metric, the better.Old Dominion exited the quarter with cash and cash equivalents worth $401.4 million compared with $403.6 million at the end of 2019. Capital expenditures incurred in the reported quarter were $58.6 million and $225.1 million for 2020. Old Dominion expects a capex of $605 million for 2021. Of the total, $275 million is anticipated to be invested in real estate and service-center expansion. The company expects to spend $290 million and $40 million on tractors and trailers, and information technology and other assets, respectively.Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. QuoteDividend UpdateThe company’s board of directors declared a first-quarter 2021 dividend of 20 cents per share (annualized: 80 cents), payable Mar 17, 2021 to its shareholders of record at the close of business on Mar 3. After taking into account the three-for-two stock split, this dividend payment represents a 33.3% increase from the quarterly cash dividend paid out in the first quarter of 2020.Moreover, during the fourth quarter of 2020, Old Dominion, currently carrying a Zacks Rank # 3 (Hold), rewarded its shareholders to the tune of $74.8. The trucking company shelled out $435.1 million to its shareholders in 2020 through share buybacks ($364.1 million) and dividends ($71 million). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.How Other Trucking Stocks PerformedLet’s take a look at some other recently released earnings reports from the Zacks Transportation-Truck sector.J.B. Hunt Transport Services JBHT reported earnings of $1.44 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.27. Total operating revenues of $2,737.7 million also surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2,514.3 million.Landstar System’s LSTR earnings (excluding 31 cents from non-recurring items) of $2.01 per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus estimate of $1.75. The bottom line also surged 58.3% year over year on higher revenues. Revenues of $1,296.4 million outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,189.6 million and also jumped 30.3% year over year.Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings’ KNX earnings (excluding 10 cents from non-recurring items) of 94 cents per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 91 cents. Moreover, the bottom line soared 70.9% year over year owing to a significant improvement in the adjusted operating ratio across all segments. Total revenues of $1,278 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,275.9 million and also increased 6.8% year over year.5 Stocks Set to DoubleEach was hand-picked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2020. Each comes from a different sector and has unique qualities and catalysts that could fuel exceptional growth.Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (JBHT): Get Free Report KnightSwift Transportation Holdings Inc. (KNX): Get Free Report Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (ODFL): Free Stock Analysis Report Landstar System, Inc. (LSTR): Get Free Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research