Caxton Associates LLP Makes New Investment in Landstar System, Inc. $LSTR

Key Points

• Caxton Associates LLP has purchased a new stake in Landstar System, acquiring 5,986 shares valued at approximately $899,000 during the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Ameriprise Financial Inc. and Golden State Wealth Management LLC, have significantly increased their stakes in Landstar System, with nearly 98% of the company's stock now held by institutional investors.
• Analyst ratings for Landstar System have varied, with Baird R W upgrading the stock to a "strong-buy" while other firms maintained "hold" ratings, reflecting a consensus rating of "Hold" with an average target price of $145.17.

Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in shares of Landstar System, Inc. (NASDAQ:LSTR - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 5,986 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $899,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Landstar System by 120.7% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 165,297 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $28,408,000 after acquiring an additional 90,391 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Landstar System by 0.3% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 81,244 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $12,203,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Landstar System by 106.2% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 299 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Landstar System by 31.7% in the 1st quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 8,156 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,225,000 after purchasing an additional 1,961 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Landstar System by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 197,786 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $29,707,000 after buying an additional 2,318 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.95% of the company's stock.

Landstar System Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:LSTR traded up $2.17 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $131.21. 275,225 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 352,273. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $133.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $138.99. The firm has a market cap of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.51 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 2.00. Landstar System, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.43 and a 52-week high of $196.86.

Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. Landstar System had a net margin of 3.51% and a return on equity of 17.49%. Landstar System's revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Landstar System, Inc. will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Landstar System Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Landstar System's payout ratio is currently 33.54%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on LSTR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Landstar System from $139.00 to $138.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Zacks Research upgraded Landstar System from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, September 8th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Landstar System from $141.00 to $135.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Baird R W upgraded Landstar System to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird began coverage on shares of Landstar System in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. They set an "outperform" rating and a $166.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Landstar System currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $145.17.

Landstar System Profile

Landstar System, Inc provides integrated transportation management solutions in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and internationally. It operates through two segments: Transportation Logistics and Insurance. The Transportation Logistics segment offers a range of transportation services, including truckload and less-than-truckload transportation, rail intermodal, air cargo, ocean cargo, expedited ground and air delivery of time-critical freight, heavy-haul/specialized, U.S.-Canada and U.S.-Mexico cross-border, intra-Mexico, intra-Canada, project cargo, and customs brokerage, as well as offers transportation services to other transportation companies, such as third party logistics and less-than-truckload services.