Invesco Ltd. Grows Stock Holdings in Werner Enterprises, Inc. $WERN

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Werner Enterprises by 3.6%, owning approximately $9.54 million in shares as of the latest SEC filing.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on Werner Enterprises, with three ratings as "Buy", six as "Hold", and six as "Sell", resulting in a consensus "Reduce" rating and an average price target of $30.50.
• Werner Enterprises recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share and announced a buyback program for 5 million shares, indicating confidence in the stock's valuation.

Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN - Free Report) by 3.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 325,456 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,246 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned 0.53% of Werner Enterprises worth $9,536,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 308,067 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $9,026,000 after acquiring an additional 8,080 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 164.3% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 11,066 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 6,879 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 15.9% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,937 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises during the 1st quarter valued at about $686,000. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises during the 1st quarter valued at about $265,000. Institutional investors own 89.32% of the company's stock.

Werner Enterprises Stock Down 0.3%

Werner Enterprises stock traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $28.73. The stock had a trading volume of 565,657 shares, compared to its average volume of 898,979. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.08. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.02 and a 12-month high of $42.48. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $28.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.72.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $753.15 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $736.09 million. Werner Enterprises had a net margin of 1.77% and a return on equity of 0.92%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.17 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Werner Enterprises declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, August 11th that authorizes the company to buyback 5,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the transportation company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 6th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 6th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Werner Enterprises's payout ratio is 65.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WERN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Werner Enterprises from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on shares of Werner Enterprises in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. They set an "underperform" rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Werner Enterprises has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $30.50.

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in transporting truckload shipments of general commodities in interstate and intrastate commerce in the United States, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Truckload Transportation Services and Werner Logistics.