Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) Stock Price Target Lowered at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• JPMorgan lowered Landstar System’s price target from $181 to $172 while maintaining a “neutral” rating; the new target implied 24.21% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus “hold” rating and average price target of $187, based on four Buy, twelve Hold, and two Sell ratings.
• Landstar shares fell 18% to $138.48 after the company reported third-quarter EPS of $1.42, missing the $1.67 consensus estimate despite revenue rising 25.4% year over year to $1.51 billion.

Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $181.00 to $172.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the transportation company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 24.21% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on LSTR. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Landstar System from $147.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Landstar System from $197.00 to $179.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Landstar System from $195.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Landstar System from $175.00 to $160.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $145.00 price target on shares of Landstar System in a report on Monday, July 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $187.00.

Landstar System Trading Down 18.0%

LSTR traded down $30.30 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $138.48. 898,338 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 479,824. The company's fifty day moving average price is $172.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $176.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.70 billion, a PE ratio of 35.84 and a beta of 0.90. Landstar System has a fifty-two week low of $121.11 and a fifty-two week high of $228.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a current ratio of 1.82.

Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The transportation company reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.67 by ($0.25). Landstar System had a return on equity of 20.84% and a net margin of 2.64%. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.22 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Landstar System will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Landstar System in the 2nd quarter valued at $698,683,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Landstar System by 19.1% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,118,554 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $179,315,000 after buying an additional 179,294 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Landstar System by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 683,119 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $109,506,000 after buying an additional 15,825 shares in the last quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Landstar System by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc now owns 508,778 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $85,803,000 after buying an additional 2,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Landstar System by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 340,739 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $57,464,000 after buying an additional 20,761 shares during the last quarter. 97.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Landstar System News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Landstar System this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue increased 25% year over year to $1.512 billion, exceeding the approximately $1.50 billion analyst estimate. Variable contribution rose 25%, while reported EPS increased from $0.56 to $1.42; the prior-year figure was depressed by a $30.1 million impairment charge. Landstar System Reports Third Quarter Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management expects truck revenue per load to rise about 1% sequentially in the fourth quarter, suggesting relatively healthy freight pricing even though variable contribution margins may compress by 20 to 30 basis points.
• Positive Sentiment: Landstar declared a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, or $1.76 annualized, supporting a modest income component for shareholders.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo and Robert W. Baird lowered their price targets to $215 and $195, respectively, but retained positive ratings of “overweight” and “outperform.” Raymond James maintained a “market perform” rating. Wells Fargo Analyst Ratings
• Negative Sentiment: Landstar’s reported third-quarter EPS of $1.42 missed the roughly $1.67 consensus estimate, even though revenue topped expectations. Elevated insurance and claims costs weighed on profitability and made the earnings quality less favorable than the headline revenue growth suggests.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors had already priced in a substantial recovery in Landstar’s profits. The earnings miss therefore raised concerns that the stock had advanced beyond a reasonable valuation, with a P/E ratio near 36, prompting a sharp reassessment despite year-over-year profit growth.

Landstar System Company Profile

Landstar System, Inc NASDAQ: LSTR is an asset-light transportation and logistics company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. Through a network of independent owner-operators, agents and third-party capacity providers, the company arranges the movement of freight for commercial and industrial customers.

Landstar's services include truckload transportation, specialized and heavy-haul freight, expedited and time-critical shipping, less-than-truckload transportation, intermodal services and logistics management.

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