The Goldman Sachs Group Cuts Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Price Target to $28.00

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) had its price target decreased by The Goldman Sachs Group from $36.00 to $28.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a sell rating on the transportation company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $34.00 to $27.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Werner Enterprises from $39.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Werner Enterprises in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $33.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Werner Enterprises from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Werner Enterprises presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.07.

Werner Enterprises Stock Performance

NASDAQ WERN opened at $28.48 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.49. 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 stock has a market cap of $1.76 billion, a PE ratio of 51.78 and a beta of 1.06. Werner Enterprises has a twelve month low of $26.50 and a twelve month high of $42.48.

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

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. Werner Enterprises’s payout ratio is currently 101.82%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,257,000. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,634,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,987,187 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $71,380,000 after purchasing an additional 234,811 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,660,846 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $59,010,000 after buying an additional 143,953 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 145.2% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 210,389 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $7,557,000 after acquiring an additional 124,574 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.32% of the company’s stock.

About Werner Enterprises

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.