Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $13.00

Key Points

• Analysts are generally bearish on Heartland Express: Seven firms give the stock a consensus “Reduce” rating, with three sells, three holds and one buy. The average 12-month price target is $13.00, above the reported $11.37 opening price.
• Financial performance remains weak: The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.14, but revenue of $152.38 million fell short of the $185.08 million estimate and declined 12.5% year over year. Heartland also posted a negative net margin and return on equity.
• Heartland declared a modest dividend: The quarterly payout is $0.02 per share, or $0.08 annualized, representing a 0.7% yield. Institutional investors and hedge funds own approximately 53.45% of the company.

Shares of Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Reduce" from the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $13.00.

HTLD has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Zacks Research cut shares of Heartland Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered Heartland Express from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 19th. Barclays lowered their target price on Heartland Express from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Heartland Express from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st.

Heartland Express Stock Down 2.7%

Shares of HTLD stock opened at $11.37 on Friday. Heartland Express has a one year low of $6.99 and a one year high of $16.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.58. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $12.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.92. The stock has a market cap of $879.24 million, a P/E ratio of -40.61 and a beta of 1.33.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The transportation company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $152.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $185.08 million. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 0.92% and a negative net margin of 2.98%.Heartland Express's quarterly revenue was down 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.14) EPS. Analysts predict that Heartland Express will post 0.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Friday, September 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.02 per share. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 25th. Heartland Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -28.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in Heartland Express during the second quarter worth about $289,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new position in Heartland Express in the second quarter valued at approximately $165,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $976,000. Susquehanna International Group LLP increased its position in shares of Heartland Express by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP now owns 27,476 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 3,165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Heartland Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,425,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.45% of the company's stock.

About Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc is a transportation and logistics company that provides asset-based truckload services in North America. The company primarily operates a fleet of dry van tractors and trailers, transporting general freight that does not require temperature control.

Its services include irregular-route and regional truckload transportation, dedicated freight, expedited shipping, and logistics support. Heartland Express serves customers across the United States and also provides cross-border transportation involving Canada and Mexico.

Founded in 1978, the company is headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa.

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