Swiss National Bank Boosts Stock Position in Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN)

Swiss National Bank lifted its position in Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 121,500 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,800 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Werner Enterprises were worth $4,364,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Werner Enterprises during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $378,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Werner Enterprises during the third quarter worth $630,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 6.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 680,673 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $26,267,000 after purchasing an additional 43,074 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position in Werner Enterprises by 431.1% during the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 20,049 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $774,000 after purchasing an additional 16,274 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 171.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,743 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $453,000 after buying an additional 7,422 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.32% of the company’s stock.

Werner Enterprises Stock Performance

Shares of WERN opened at $29.97 on Wednesday. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.77 and a 12-month high of $42.48. The stock has a market cap of $1.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.49 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The company has a 50-day moving average of $33.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.36.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The transportation company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.15). Werner Enterprises had a net margin of 1.13% and a return on equity of 2.27%. As a group, research analysts predict that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be given a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. Werner Enterprises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 101.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WERN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Susquehanna upgraded Werner Enterprises from a “negative” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $38.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Werner Enterprises from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Werner Enterprises in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $33.00 price target on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.00.

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in transporting truckload shipments of general commodities in interstate and intrastate commerce in the United States, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Truckload Transportation Services and Werner Logistics.