J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) Hits New 12-Month Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday after The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on the stock from $188.00 to $166.00. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. J.B. Hunt Transport Services traded as low as $127.05 and last traded at $128.93, with a volume of 177093 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $129.46.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on JBHT. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $207.00 to $202.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial started coverage on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James lowered their price target 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. Susquehanna downgraded shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “positive” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $200.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Friday, March 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $167.00 price objective on the stock. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.95.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James K. Thompson sold 4,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.37, for a total transaction of $771,628.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,131,541.83. This represents a 15.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Darren P. Field sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.67, for a total value of $194,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 17,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,881,282.74. The trade was a 6.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. National Pension Service purchased a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 102.2% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 281 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 68.7% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 329 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 33.9% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 340 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. 74.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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’s 50 day moving average is $155.02 and its 200 day moving average is $169.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.16, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.27.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 14.05% and a net margin of 4.72%. The business had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.47 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. This is a positive change from J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.65%.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

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.