Victory Capital Management Inc. Trims Stake in Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN)

Victory Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,197,076 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 56,663 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 5.16% of Marten Transport worth $88,055,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Marten Transport in the third quarter valued at approximately $570,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in Marten Transport by 26.3% during the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 14,779 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 3,079 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Marten Transport by 36.2% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 11,364 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 3,018 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio grew its position in shares of Marten Transport by 2.8% in the third quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 36,700 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $723,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Marten Transport during the third quarter worth about $662,000. 69.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MRTN shares. Vertical Research upgraded Marten Transport from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Stephens lowered their price target on Marten Transport from $23.00 to $21.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 19th.

Marten Transport Trading Up 1.3 %

MRTN opened at $17.44 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.42 billion, a PE ratio of 24.56 and a beta of 0.79. Marten Transport, Ltd. has a twelve month low of $15.33 and a twelve month high of $23.38. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $17.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.80.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The transportation company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.12. Marten Transport had a return on equity of 7.65% and a net margin of 5.31%. The business had revenue of $249.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $262.77 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.28 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Marten Transport’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.80%.

Marten Transport Company Profile

Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United State, Mexico, and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment, as well as dry freight; and regional short-haul and medium-to-long-haul full-load transportation services.