55,291 Shares in Rush Enterprises, Inc. $RUSHA Purchased by Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd.

Key Points

• Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. bought 55,291 shares of Rush Enterprises in Q1, a position valued at about $3.66 million and equal to roughly 0.07% of the company.
• Rush Enterprises reported Q1 EPS of $0.77, beating estimates by $0.05, though revenue of $1.68 billion came in slightly below expectations.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, and analysts currently have a Hold consensus with an average target price of $83.67.

Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. purchased a new position in Rush Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUSHA - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 55,291 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,655,000. Leith Wheeler Investment Counsel Ltd. owned approximately 0.07% of Rush Enterprises at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in RUSHA. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Rush Enterprises by 63.9% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 27,040 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,459,000 after acquiring an additional 10,545 shares in the last quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rush Enterprises by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 350,952 shares of the company's stock worth $18,930,000 after purchasing an additional 24,781 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Rush Enterprises during the fourth quarter worth approximately $776,000. Cooke & Bieler LP grew its position in Rush Enterprises by 85.0% during the fourth quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 729,250 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,336,000 after purchasing an additional 335,019 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp increased its stake in Rush Enterprises by 322.0% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 21,956 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,184,000 after buying an additional 16,753 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.43% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Rush Enterprises news, Director Michael Mcroberts sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.23, for a total transaction of $577,840.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 16,229 shares in the company, valued at $1,172,220.67. This trade represents a 33.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 12.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Rush Enterprises Price Performance

NASDAQ RUSHA opened at $74.92 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.82 billion, a PE ratio of 22.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.89. Rush Enterprises, Inc. has a 12-month low of $45.67 and a 12-month high of $80.17. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $71.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $68.58.

Rush Enterprises (NASDAQ:RUSHA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.05. Rush Enterprises had a net margin of 3.65% and a return on equity of 11.87%. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.73 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Rush Enterprises, Inc. will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rush Enterprises Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 12th. Rush Enterprises's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on RUSHA. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Rush Enterprises in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Rush Enterprises in a research note on Monday, April 27th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $88.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on Rush Enterprises from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings cut Rush Enterprises from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Rush Enterprises from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $83.67.

Rush Enterprises Profile

Rush Enterprises, Inc, headquartered in New Braunfels, Texas, is a leading distributor of commercial vehicles and related products in the United States. Through its Rush Truck Centers subsidiary, the company sells new and used medium- and heavy-duty trucks, buses and specialty vehicles, while also offering factory-authorized parts, collision repair, maintenance and warranty support across its network of dealerships.

Founded in 1965, Rush Enterprises has grown to encompass more than 150 locations in over 20 states, partnering with major manufacturers including Kenworth, Peterbilt, Freightliner, Volvo and Mack.

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