J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $189.84.

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $205.00 target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays raised their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Raymond James lowered their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Citigroup lowered their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $204.00 to $193.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Friday. They issued a “hold” rating and a $167.00 target price on the stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock opened at $163.45 on Tuesday. 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 business’s 50 day simple moving average is $170.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $174.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.40, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.16. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a twelve month low of $153.12 and a twelve month high of $203.02.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The transportation company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 14.05% and a net margin of 4.72%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.47 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $0.44 dividend. This is an increase from J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.65%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director James K. Thompson sold 4,400 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.37, for a total transaction of $771,628.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 23,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,131,541.83. This trade represents a 15.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the third quarter worth about $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2,028.6% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 149 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service acquired a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 102.2% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 281 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. 74.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.