Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Sells 1,861 Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Key Points

• Gateway Investment Advisers LLC reduced its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 34.7%, now holding 3,499 shares valued at $502,000 after selling 1,861 shares in the second quarter.
• In the fourth quarter, several institutional investors, including Lazard Asset Management LLC and MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS, increased their positions, indicating continued interest in J.B. Hunt Transport Services.
• J.B. Hunt recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, reflecting a 1.3% dividend yield and a payout ratio of 32.00%.

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lowered its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) by 34.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,499 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 1,861 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services were worth $502,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in JBHT. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 126.2% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,798 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 1,561 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,975 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,532,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. Man Group plc boosted its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 11,165 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,905,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 42,868 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $7,316,000 after purchasing an additional 2,729 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 53.2% during the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 6,429 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,097,000 after buying an additional 2,233 shares during the period. 74.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on JBHT. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $155.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $163.00 price target (up from $150.00) on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $159.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, J.B. Hunt Transport Services has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $164.14.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Down 1.4%

NASDAQ JBHT traded down $1.87 on Monday, reaching $130.65. 1,644,771 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,129,054. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.79 and a 12 month high of $200.40. The company has a market cap of $12.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.75, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $143.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $142.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The transportation company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.93 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 14.26% and a net margin of 4.59%.J.B. Hunt Transport Services's quarterly revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.32 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's payout ratio is currently 32.00%.

Insider Activity

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, EVP Eric Mcgee purchased 1,148 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $140.76 per share, with a total value of $161,592.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 7,397 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,041,201.72. This trade represents a 18.37% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David Keefauver sold 989 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.97, for a total transaction of $150,298.33. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $143,763.62. This represents a 51.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc provides surface transportation, delivery, and logistic services in the United States. It operates through five segments: Intermodal (JBI), Dedicated Contract Services (DCS), Integrated Capacity Solutions (ICS), Final Mile Services (FMS), and Truckload (JBT). The JBI segment offers intermodal freight solutions.