Citigroup Issues Positive Forecast for Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) Stock Price

Key Points

• Citigroup raised its price target on Old Dominion to $218 (from $216) while keeping a "neutral" rating, implying roughly a 9.6% upside from the stock's recent ~$198.93 price.
• Old Dominion modestly beat quarterly estimates—$1.09 EPS vs. $1.06 consensus and $1.31B revenue vs. $1.30B—but revenue was down 5.7% year-over-year and the shares trade at a high PE of 41.19.
• Insiders have been active sellers recently: the chairman sold 52,000 shares and a director sold 3,134 shares, with insiders offloading 80,134 shares (~$15.6M) over the past three months; institutional holders own about 77.8% while insiders hold 10.0%.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL - Get Free Report) had its price objective increased by stock analysts at Citigroup from $216.00 to $218.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the transportation company's stock. Citigroup's target price would indicate a potential upside of 9.59% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $167.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $209.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company raised Old Dominion Freight Line from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $165.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their target price on Old Dominion Freight Line from $114.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays set a $185.00 price target on Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $194.92.

Old Dominion Freight Line Stock Performance

Shares of Old Dominion Freight Line stock opened at $198.93 on Tuesday. Old Dominion Freight Line has a 52-week low of $126.01 and a 52-week high of $221.63. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $192.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $164.40. The firm has a market cap of $41.46 billion, a PE ratio of 41.19, a P/E/G ratio of 4.18 and a beta of 1.20.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The transportation company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.30 billion. Old Dominion Freight Line had a net margin of 18.62% and a return on equity of 24.03%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Old Dominion Freight Line will post 5.68 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Old Dominion Freight Line

In related news, Director Bradley R. Gabosch sold 3,134 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.27, for a total value of $608,842.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 11,278 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,190,977.06. This represents a 21.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman David S. Congdon sold 52,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.77, for a total transaction of $10,128,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 712,800 shares in the company, valued at $138,832,056. This represents a 6.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 80,134 shares of company stock valued at $15,640,132. 10.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its position in Old Dominion Freight Line by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 645 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $101,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,181 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $812,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co. grew its holdings in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 3,883 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $609,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. CNB Bank increased its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. CNB Bank now owns 3,127 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,765 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $434,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the period. 77.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Old Dominion Freight Line Company Profile

Old Dominion Freight Line is a U.S.-based less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation company that provides regional, inter-regional and national freight services. Founded in 1934 and headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, the company has grown from a regional carrier into a national freight network, operating a broad system of service centers and terminals to move shipments for shippers of varying sizes and industries.

The company's core business is LTL trucking, offering scheduled pickup and delivery for palletized freight that does not require a full truckload.

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