BlackRock Inc. Buys New Position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 6.34 million shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the second quarter, worth approximately $1.83 billion and representing about 6.75% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 74.95% of JBHT.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with the stock carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $286.30; individual targets range as high as $345.
• J.B. Hunt reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.91 versus the $1.71 estimate and revenue of $3.50 billion, up 19.4% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, equal to a 0.7% yield.

BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 6,335,217 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $1,833,602,000. BlackRock Inc. owned approximately 6.75% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 411.5% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,799,843 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $258,457,000 after purchasing an additional 1,447,993 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $200,587,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 75,567.4% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,006,377 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $195,580,000 after buying an additional 1,005,047 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $187,701,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 338.0% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 823,089 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $110,434,000 after buying an additional 635,172 shares during the period. 74.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on JBHT. Benchmark boosted their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $248.00 price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Susquehanna set a $345.00 target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen raised J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, June 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, J.B. Hunt Transport Services currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $286.30.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

Shares of JBHT opened at $272.42 on Thursday. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $130.12 and a twelve month high of $299.76. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $279.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $250.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.59, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The transportation company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $3.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.26 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 5.31% and a return on equity of 18.75%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.31 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 7.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's payout ratio is 25.50%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Brian Webb sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.01, for a total transaction of $426,015.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 15,881 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,510,362.81. This represents a 8.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David Keefauver sold 703 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.13, for a total value of $200,446.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $225,252.70. The trade was a 47.09% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

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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