Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) Holdings Raised by D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc.

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD - Free Report) by 20.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 176,258 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 29,926 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. owned approximately 0.22% of Heartland Express worth $1,978,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Heartland Express by 159.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 127,153 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,561,000 after buying an additional 78,237 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC grew its stake in Heartland Express by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 39,395 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $442,000 after purchasing an additional 2,196 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Heartland Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $75,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Heartland Express by 35.2% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 346,271 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $3,885,000 after purchasing an additional 90,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Heartland Express during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $171,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 53.45% of the company's stock.

Heartland Express Stock Performance

HTLD traded up $0.30 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $9.05. 515,304 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 436,032. The stock has a market cap of $710.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -24.46 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Heartland Express, Inc. has a 12 month low of $7.11 and a 12 month high of $13.67.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The transportation company reported ($0.18) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.05). Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 3.57% and a negative net margin of 2.84%. The business had revenue of $219.42 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $241.37 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.19) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Heartland Express, Inc. will post 0.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on HTLD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Heartland Express from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Heartland Express from $11.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Heartland Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Michael J. Gerdin purchased 148,272 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $8.50 per share, for a total transaction of $1,260,312.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 438,282 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,725,397. The trade was a 51.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Ann S. Gerdin Revocable Trust acquired 167,644 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $8.95 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,413.80. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 1,214,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,869,775. This trade represents a 16.01% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired a total of 619,031 shares of company stock worth $5,125,232 over the last quarter. 40.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services.