Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) Stock Bumped Up to "Buy" by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Old Dominion Freight Line from “hold” to “buy,” though the broader analyst consensus remains “hold,” with 10 buy, 15 hold and one sell rating and an average price target of $223.48.
• ODFL shares opened at $187.72, down 0.6%, and remain below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages. The stock has traded between $126.01 and $252.03 over the past year.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $1.68 versus the $1.54 consensus and revenue of $1.55 billion, up 10.4% year over year; institutional investors own 77.82% of the stock.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on ODFL. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Old Dominion Freight Line from $250.00 to $232.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Citigroup upgraded Old Dominion Freight Line from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $231.00 to $223.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Old Dominion Freight Line from $232.00 to $202.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets set a $235.00 price objective on Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Old Dominion Freight Line presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $223.48.

Old Dominion Freight Line Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of Old Dominion Freight Line stock opened at $187.72 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $38.93 billion, a PE ratio of 36.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 1.20. Old Dominion Freight Line has a 12-month low of $126.01 and a 12-month high of $252.03. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $188.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $207.59.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.54 billion. Old Dominion Freight Line had a net margin of 19.44% and a return on equity of 24.87%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Old Dominion Freight Line will post 5.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Cecil Overbey, Jr. sold 19,952 shares of Old Dominion Freight Line stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.39, for a total transaction of $3,958,277.28. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 22,746 shares in the company, valued at $4,512,578.94. The trade was a 46.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 8.20% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Old Dominion Freight Line

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ODFL. Nykredit A S bought a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $16,333,000. Compass Financial Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,158,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,410,000. Park National Corp OH bought a new position in Old Dominion Freight Line during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,056,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Old Dominion Freight Line by 14.7% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,114,345 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $241,367,000 after buying an additional 142,809 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.82% of the company's stock.

Old Dominion Freight Line Company Profile

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc is a transportation and logistics company that specializes in regional, inter-regional and national less-than-truckload (LTL) services. The company transports shipments that do not require an entire truck, serving commercial, industrial and retail customers across the United States.

Its services include standard and expedited LTL transportation, freight brokerage, supply chain consulting, container drayage and warehousing. Old Dominion supports customers through a network of service centers, terminals and distribution facilities, providing pickup, line-haul and delivery capabilities for a broad range of freight.

Founded in 1934 by Earl Congdon, the company is headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina.

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