Castleark Management LLC Purchases New Shares in Rush Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUSHA)

Castleark Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rush Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUSHA - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 86,220 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,724,000. Castleark Management LLC owned 0.11% of Rush Enterprises at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in Rush Enterprises by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 11,183 shares of the company's stock worth $613,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in Rush Enterprises by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 30,100 shares of the company's stock worth $1,649,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Rush Enterprises by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,365 shares of the company's stock valued at $349,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Rush Enterprises by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,142 shares of the company's stock worth $775,000 after buying an additional 578 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Rush Enterprises by 71.0% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,435 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 596 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.43% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Rush Enterprises from $63.00 to $61.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd.

Rush Enterprises Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ RUSHA traded up $1.11 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $50.03. 46,415 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 382,726. The company's 50 day moving average price is $51.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.89 billion, a PE ratio of 13.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.94. Rush Enterprises, Inc. has a 12 month low of $40.99 and a 12 month high of $65.43.

Rush Enterprises (NASDAQ:RUSHA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.01. Rush Enterprises had a return on equity of 14.76% and a net margin of 3.90%. The business had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.86 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Rush Enterprises, Inc. will post 3.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rush Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. Rush Enterprises's payout ratio is presently 20.11%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Jason Wilder sold 483 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.39, for a total transaction of $27,236.37. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 85,420 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,816,833.80. This represents a 0.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Michael L. Goldstone sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.10, for a total value of $234,450.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 12,510 shares of the company's stock, valued at $651,771. The trade was a 26.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,731 shares of company stock worth $303,634. Company insiders own 12.28% of the company's stock.

Rush Enterprises Company Profile

Rush Enterprises, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated retailer of commercial vehicles and related services in the United States and Canada. The company operates a network of commercial vehicle dealerships under the Rush Truck Centers name. Its Rush Truck Centers primarily sell commercial vehicles manufactured by Peterbilt, International, Hino, Ford, Isuzu, IC Bus, Blue Bird, and Dennis Eagle.