Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Sell”

StockNews.com lowered shares of Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Friday.

ODFL has been the topic of several other research reports. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $237.00 to $204.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Old Dominion Freight Line from $176.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup boosted their price target on Old Dominion Freight Line from $201.00 to $241.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Argus cut Old Dominion Freight Line from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $240.00 target price on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $203.33.

Old Dominion Freight Line Stock Performance

Shares of ODFL opened at $197.20 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $42.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.48, a PEG ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The business’s 50 day moving average is $190.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $197.70. Old Dominion Freight Line has a 52-week low of $165.49 and a 52-week high of $233.26.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The transportation company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.06. Old Dominion Freight Line had a net margin of 21.03% and a return on equity of 29.40%. Analysts forecast that Old Dominion Freight Line will post 5.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. This is a positive change from Old Dominion Freight Line’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. Old Dominion Freight Line’s dividend payout ratio is 18.18%.

Institutional Trading of Old Dominion Freight Line

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 109.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,435,228 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $285,094,000 after purchasing an additional 750,073 shares in the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in Old Dominion Freight Line in the fourth quarter worth about $128,221,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Old Dominion Freight Line by 19,764.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 685,308 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $136,130,000 after buying an additional 681,858 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Old Dominion Freight Line during the 4th quarter valued at about $114,449,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 74.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,022,812 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $207,068,000 after buying an additional 437,700 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.82% of the company’s stock.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc operates as a less-than-truckload motor carrier in the United States and North America. The company offers regional, inter-regional, and national less-than-truckload services, as well as expedited transportation. It also provides various value-added services, including container drayage, truckload brokerage, and supply chain consulting.