J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) Sets New 52-Week Low on Insider Selling

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $151.60 and last traded at $153.98, with a volume of 45420 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $154.18.

Specifically, EVP Darren P. Field sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.67, for a total transaction of $194,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,881,282.74. This represents a 6.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Raymond James reduced their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $167.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $204.00 to $193.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $189.84.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.33 billion, a PE ratio of 27.52, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.16. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $169.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $174.17.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The transportation company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.62 by ($0.09). J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.72% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The company had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.47 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This is a positive change from J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s payout ratio is presently 31.65%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On J.B. Hunt Transport Services

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH lifted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 292.7% in the 4th quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 22,798 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,891,000 after purchasing an additional 16,992 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the fourth quarter valued at about $14,655,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 28.2% during the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 8,739 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,491,000 after acquiring an additional 1,923 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,799 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $307,000 after acquiring an additional 460 shares during the period. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 42,868 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $7,316,000 after acquiring an additional 2,729 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.95% of the company’s stock.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc provides surface transportation, delivery, and logistic services in the United States. It operates through five segments: Intermodal (JBI), Dedicated Contract Services (DCS), Integrated Capacity Solutions (ICS), Final Mile Services (FMS), and Truckload (JBT). The JBI segment offers intermodal freight solutions.