297,158 Shares in Heartland Express, Inc. $HTLD Acquired by Bank of America Corp DE

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 297,158 shares of Heartland Express in the second quarter, valued at approximately $4.5 million and representing a 0.38% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 53.45% of the company.
• Heartland Express reported quarterly EPS of $0.14, but revenue of $152.38 million fell short of the $185.08 million consensus estimate and declined 12.5% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with the stock carrying an average “Reduce” rating and a $13 consensus price target. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.02 per share, equivalent to a 0.7% annual yield.

Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 297,158 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $4,523,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.38% of Heartland Express as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Heartland Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $104,523,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of Heartland Express by 34.7% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 588,810 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $6,124,000 after acquiring an additional 151,589 shares during the period. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Heartland Express during the fourth quarter worth $2,619,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Heartland Express by 5.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,873,653 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $40,285,000 after acquiring an additional 201,151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Heartland Express by 285.2% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 78,916 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $713,000 after purchasing an additional 58,428 shares during the period. 53.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Heartland Express Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:HTLD opened at $11.44 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $884.66 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -40.86 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Heartland Express, Inc. has a 12-month low of $6.99 and a 12-month high of $16.64. The business's 50 day moving average is $12.52 and its 200 day moving average is $12.94.

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

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HTLD. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Barclays decreased their target price on Heartland Express from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Heartland Express from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen lowered Heartland Express from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, September 19th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Heartland Express currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $13.00.

Heartland Express Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.