Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Reduces Position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management cut its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 39.5% in the first quarter, selling 76,949 shares and ending with 117,806 shares valued at about $25 million.
• J.B. Hunt reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.49 versus $1.45 expected and revenue of $3.06 billion versus $3.01 billion forecast, while revenue rose 4.6% year over year.
• The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share and saw notable insider selling, including transactions by EVPs David Keefauver and Darren P. Field.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. decreased its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) by 39.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 117,806 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 76,949 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.12% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services worth $24,963,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of JBHT. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 39.1% in the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 178 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 34.3% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 19,800.0% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 199 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 74.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

NASDAQ:JBHT opened at $280.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. The company has a 50-day moving average of $263.32 and a 200-day moving average of $229.08. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $130.12 and a 52 week high of $293.54. The company has a market capitalization of $26.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.39, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.30.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.01 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 5.13% and a return on equity of 17.30%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.17 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.86%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP David Keefauver sold 703 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.13, for a total transaction of $200,446.39. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 790 shares in the company, valued at $225,252.70. This represents a 47.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Darren P. Field sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.49, for a total value of $1,017,960.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,696 shares in the company, valued at $2,213,045.04. The trade was a 31.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 18,119 shares of company stock valued at $4,736,095. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $205.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $248.00 price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $240.00 target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $239.87.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.

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