Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $14.39 and last traded at $14.44, with a volume of 366076 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $14.64.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Stephens raised their target price on shares of Marten Transport from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th.

Marten Transport Trading Up 1.0 %

The company’s 50 day moving average is $15.43 and its 200-day moving average is $16.44. The company has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.29 and a beta of 0.83.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The transportation company reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.01. Marten Transport had a net margin of 2.79% and a return on equity of 3.52%. Analysts predict that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marten Transport Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. Marten Transport’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.59%.

Institutional Trading of Marten Transport

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MRTN. Independence Bank of Kentucky purchased a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 54.6% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,376 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 1,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the fourth quarter worth approximately $100,000. 69.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marten Transport Company Profile

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.