J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) Holdings Trimmed by Heartland Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors Inc. has reduced its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 7.4%, now holding 119,964 shares, which accounts for 1.0% of its investment portfolio.
• J.B. Hunt's recent quarterly earnings showed a miss against analysts' estimates, reporting $1.31 per share compared to the expected $1.34.
• The company declared a $0.44 quarterly dividend, with an annualized yield of 1.18%, set to be paid on August 22nd to shareholders of record on August 8th.

Heartland Advisors Inc. decreased its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) by 7.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 119,964 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 9,567 shares during the quarter. J.B. Hunt Transport Services accounts for about 1.0% of Heartland Advisors Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned 0.12% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services worth $17,749,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 104.2% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 17,319 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,562,000 after purchasing an additional 8,839 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 4,726 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $699,000 after acquiring an additional 406 shares in the last quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC now owns 6,709 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $993,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 117,022 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $17,313,000 after acquiring an additional 3,125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wakefield Asset Management LLLP purchased a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 1st quarter worth about $323,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.95% of the company's stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of JBHT stock opened at $149.73 on Friday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $144.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $150.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.87. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.79 and a twelve month high of $200.40. The company has a market capitalization of $14.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.22, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.29.

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

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on JBHT. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America increased their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $166.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Robert W. Baird began coverage on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $169.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $148.00 price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $164.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, EVP David Keefauver sold 989 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.97, for a total value of $150,298.33. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $143,763.62. The trade was a 51.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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