J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) Shares Sold by Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lessened its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) by 56.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 74,400 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 96,500 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.07% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services worth $12,697,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in JBHT. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,097 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $878,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 820 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $140,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 535 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $92,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised 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 acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,199 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $205,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. 74.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Nicholas Hobbs purchased 1,529 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $130.75 per share, with a total value of $199,916.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 91,847 shares in the company, valued at $12,008,995.25. This represents a 1.69 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Darren P. Field sold 1,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were 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 directly owns 17,822 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,881,282.74. The trade was a 6.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on JBHT. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Susquehanna set a $140.00 price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $190.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $196.00 to $155.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $162.20.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock traded down $0.78 on Thursday, hitting $129.80. 1,770,441 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 955,141. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $144.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $166.07. The company has a market cap of $12.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.27. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.79 and a 12-month high of $200.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.92 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.72% and a return on equity of 14.05%. Analysts expect that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.36%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.94%.

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.