ArcBest Corporation $ARCB Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group sharply increased its ArcBest stake by 349.9% in the fourth quarter, ending with 493,780 shares valued at about $36.6 million. Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other investors holding 99.27% of the company.
• ArcBest posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.32 per share, topping estimates by $0.05, while revenue came in at $998.8 million, roughly in line with expectations. Revenue also rose 3.3% year over year.
• Analysts turned more positive on the stock, with several raising price targets and ArcBest now carrying a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $123.42. The shares recently traded at $120.97, near their 52-week high of $135.10.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCB - Free Report) by 349.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 493,780 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 384,024 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 2.19% of ArcBest worth $36,634,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bryce Point Capital LLC bought a new position in ArcBest in the 3rd quarter valued at about $476,000. Summit Global Investments bought a new position in ArcBest in the 3rd quarter valued at about $939,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in ArcBest by 100.8% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 87,256 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $6,734,000 after buying an additional 43,803 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in ArcBest in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,970,000. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc bought a new position in ArcBest in the 4th quarter valued at about $7,240,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.27% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ARCB shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of ArcBest from $85.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of ArcBest from $97.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of ArcBest from $95.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of ArcBest in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of ArcBest from $116.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, ArcBest presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $123.42.

ArcBest Stock Performance

Shares of ARCB opened at $120.97 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $104.38 and its 200-day moving average is $89.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.95. ArcBest Corporation has a 12-month low of $59.43 and a 12-month high of $135.10.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $998.79 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $999.07 million. ArcBest had a net margin of 1.38% and a return on equity of 6.15%. The business's revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that ArcBest Corporation will post 5.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ArcBest Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. ArcBest's payout ratio is currently 19.75%.

About ArcBest

ArcBest Corporation NASDAQ: ARCB is a transportation and logistics company that offers comprehensive freight and supply chain solutions across North America. Founded in 1923 as Arkansas Best Freight System, the company has evolved into a diversified service provider with both asset-based and asset-light operations. Its core businesses include less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping through ABF Freight, expedited full-truckload services via Panther Premium Logistics, and a range of logistics and supply chain management services under its ArcBest Integrated Logistics division.

The company's asset-based operations also encompass FleetNet America, a provider of emergency roadside assistance and maintenance services for heavy-duty vehicles.

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