Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Sees Large Volume Increase – Should You Buy?

Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) saw strong trading volume on Monday . 226,879 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 46% from the previous session’s volume of 421,303 shares.The stock last traded at $15.34 and had previously closed at $15.26.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Marten Transport from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Raymond James cut shares of Marten Transport from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th.

Marten Transport Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.25 billion, a PE ratio of 36.50 and a beta of 0.83. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $16.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.03.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The transportation company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.02). Marten Transport had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 4.41%. The business had revenue of $237.37 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $244.00 million. Analysts forecast that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Marten Transport Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were given a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. Marten Transport’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marten Transport

In other news, Director Jerry M. Bauer acquired 10,000 shares of Marten Transport stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $15.81 per share, for a total transaction of $158,100.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 156,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,473,379.64. This trade represents a 6.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 22.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marten Transport

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 22.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 685,308 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,130,000 after purchasing an additional 126,150 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,402,776 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $25,881,000 after purchasing an additional 162,924 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 140.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 136,498 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,416,000 after purchasing an additional 79,689 shares in the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marten Transport in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,334,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 120.6% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 138,508 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,452,000 after purchasing an additional 75,721 shares in the last quarter. 69.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Marten Transport

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.