CluenexU-Haul UHAL
U-Haul scores weak on business quality (3.3 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What U-Haul does
U-Haul rents out trucks and self-storage units to household movers, collecting fees across a massive neighborhood network. The business relies heavily on maintaining a vast physical fleet to capture consumer moving demand.
- What it does best
U-Haul dominates DIY moving logistics through an unmatched network of independent dealers. Its gross margin of 35.8% trails peers like ODFL at 89.2%, but physical ubiquity makes local drop-offs nearly impossible for new entrants to replicate.
- The main risk
Heavy capital outlays for fleet maintenance and storage expansion drain cash. Free cash flow sits at negative $1.2B, forcing reliance on debt to fund operations and leaving the balance sheet exposed if moving demand softens.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Operating margins rest thin at 8.5% with a negative free cash flow margin of 2.0%, ranking in the sector's bottom quartile. Heavy capital spending on equipment prevents profitability from scaling smoothly with revenue.
Scale creates a physical network moat that locks in everyday consumers looking for nearby truck rentals. Operating in the bottom quartile for operating margins at the 24th sector percentile, its sheer footprint replaces high profitability.
Revenue grew 3.6% to $6.1B, continuing a slow upward crawl from prior years. This pace lags historical peaks, showing a maturing core moving business that struggles to accelerate top-line expansion.
Total debt of $8.1B outstrips cash of $1.1B, leaving a net debt burden of $7.0B. Free cash flow remains negative at negative $1.2B after heavy capital expenditures. The balance sheet is softening under heavy leverage.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Our sealed record on UHAL
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
U-Haul scores weak on the Cluenex quality check (3.3 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is weak, moat weak, growth slow and financial health weak.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Nov 3, 2026.
See UHAL today
- Today's verdict on UHAL, and why
- Fair value with cautious, base and optimistic cases
- The exact price that would change the verdict
- Which stocks each signal names, the night it fires
Cite this page: Cluenex, “U-Haul (UHAL)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/uhal/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.