Legal & General Group Plc Trims Stake in Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. $ODFL

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc cut its stake in Old Dominion Freight Line by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 1.17 million shares worth about $183.9 million.
• Old Dominion Freight Line reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, posting EPS of $1.14 versus estimates of $1.05 and revenue of $1.33 billion, even as revenue declined 2.9% year over year.
• The stock has seen mixed sentiment: analysts currently rate it a Hold on average with a consensus price target of $206.29, while company director Greg C. Gantt recently sold 22,107 shares in an insider transaction.

Legal & General Group Plc reduced its stake in Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL - Free Report) by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,173,092 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 124,827 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.56% of Old Dominion Freight Line worth $183,941,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line during the 4th quarter worth approximately $179,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 15,669 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,457,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511 shares during the period. Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 78,389 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $12,291,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $188,651,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Old Dominion Freight Line by 24.4% in the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 9,398 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,474,000 after purchasing an additional 1,841 shares during the period. 77.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ODFL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $225.00 price objective (up from $218.00) on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a report on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $202.00 to $216.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $235.00 target price on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. TD Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $194.00 price target (up from $180.00) on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Susquehanna reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $205.00 price target (up from $185.00) on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $206.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Greg C. Gantt sold 22,107 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.52, for a total transaction of $4,233,932.64. Following the sale, the director directly owned 88,551 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,959,287.52. This represents a 19.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 10.00% of the company's stock.

Old Dominion Freight Line Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:ODFL opened at $219.45 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $203.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $181.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.91, a PEG ratio of 4.43 and a beta of 1.17. Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. has a 12-month low of $126.01 and a 12-month high of $233.79.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The transportation company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.09. Old Dominion Freight Line had a return on equity of 23.42% and a net margin of 18.46%.The firm had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. will post 5.32 EPS for the current year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Old Dominion Freight Line's payout ratio is presently 24.27%.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line is a U.S.-based less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation company that provides regional, inter-regional and national freight services. Founded in 1934 and headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, the company has grown from a regional carrier into a national freight network, operating a broad system of service centers and terminals to move shipments for shippers of varying sizes and industries.

The company's core business is LTL trucking, offering scheduled pickup and delivery for palletized freight that does not require a full truckload.

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