UBS Group Cuts Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Price Target to $12.00

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) had its target price cut by UBS Group from $13.00 to $12.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $10.00 target price (down previously from $12.00) on shares of Heartland Express in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Heartland Express from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Heartland Express from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Heartland Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.75.

Heartland Express Stock Performance

Heartland Express stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $10.91. 315,986 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 346,695. Heartland Express has a 12-month low of $9.63 and a 12-month high of $14.60. The business’s 50-day moving average is $11.80 and its 200-day moving average is $11.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $856.44 million, a PE ratio of -37.62 and a beta of 0.69.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The transportation company reported ($0.12) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.11). Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 2.11% and a negative return on equity of 2.70%. The business had revenue of $259.86 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $268.35 million. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.14) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Heartland Express will post -0.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 27th were issued a dividend of $0.02 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 27th. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Heartland Express’s dividend payout ratio is -27.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Michael J. Gerdin acquired 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $11.67 per share, with a total value of $583,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,196,718 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,965,699.06. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 39.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heartland Express

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HTLD. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 37,199 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $457,000 after acquiring an additional 4,771 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its position in Heartland Express by 85.7% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,069 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 2,340 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Heartland Express in the third quarter worth $305,000. Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its holdings in Heartland Express by 33.3% during the 2nd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 19,245 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 4,808 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express in the 2nd quarter valued at about $316,000. 53.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Heartland Express Company Profile

Heartland Express, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services.