Heartland Express, Inc. $HTLD Shares Acquired by Dean Capital Management

Key Points

• Dean Capital Management increased its stake in Heartland Express by 111.7%, now holding 185,514 shares valued at approximately $1.71 million.
• Analysts have recently downgraded their target price for Heartland Express, with Barclays lowering it from $9.00 to $8.00, while the overall average target price is now $9.70.
• Heartland Express reported a negative earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.14) for its last quarter, missing estimates, and experienced a 23.4% decline in revenue year-over-year.

Dean Capital Management increased its stake in Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD - Free Report) by 111.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 185,514 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 97,877 shares during the period. Dean Capital Management owned 0.24% of Heartland Express worth $1,710,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Heartland Express by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 959,257 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $8,844,000 after acquiring an additional 60,968 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Heartland Express in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $6,389,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its position in Heartland Express by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 588,417 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $5,425,000 after acquiring an additional 7,146 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Heartland Express in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $5,396,000. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in Heartland Express by 55.6% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 560,300 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $6,287,000 after acquiring an additional 200,100 shares during the period. 53.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Heartland Express Price Performance

Shares of HTLD stock traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $8.47. 423,885 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 610,518. Heartland Express, Inc. has a twelve month low of $7.11 and a twelve month high of $12.85. The firm has a market cap of $655.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.41 and a beta of 1.09. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $8.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $8.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The transportation company reported ($0.14) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by ($0.06). Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 3.85% and a negative return on equity of 4.42%. The firm had revenue of $210.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $229.12 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.04) earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 23.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Heartland Express, Inc. will post 0.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 23rd will be issued a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 23rd. Heartland Express's payout ratio is presently -17.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Baird R W upgraded Heartland Express to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Heartland Express from $9.00 to $8.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Barclays lowered their target price on Heartland Express from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Heartland Express has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $9.70.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michael J. Gerdin bought 24,798 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $8.19 per share, for a total transaction of $203,095.62. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,491,868 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,218,398.92. The trade was a 1.69% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders acquired 30,000 shares of company stock valued at $245,752. Insiders own 40.70% of the company's stock.

Heartland Express Company Profile

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.