Norges Bank Makes New $200.59 Million Investment in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Key Points

• Norges Bank opened a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, buying 1,032,144 shares worth about $200.6 million and taking roughly a 1.08% stake in the company.
• The company’s latest quarterly results beat expectations, with EPS of $1.49 versus $1.45 estimated and revenue of $3.06 billion versus $3.01 billion expected, while revenue rose 4.6% year over year.
• J.B. Hunt also paid a $0.45 quarterly dividend and received mostly positive analyst commentary, with the stock carrying a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $228.17.

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,032,144 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $200,587,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.08% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JBHT. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 74.3% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,643 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,314,000 after purchasing an additional 6,668 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 433,661 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $64,160,000 after purchasing an additional 13,729 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 27.8% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $539,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 21.0% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 583 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 74.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director James K. Thompson sold 1,000 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.28, for a total transaction of $254,280.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 19,559 shares in the company, valued at $4,973,462.52. This trade represents a 4.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Nicholas Hobbs sold 1,272 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.75, for a total transaction of $318,954.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 91,736 shares in the company, valued at $23,002,802. This represents a 1.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 15,916 shares of company stock worth $4,109,634 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:JBHT opened at $275.59 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $239.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $215.18. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $130.12 and a 12 month high of $279.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.30.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 5.13% and a return on equity of 17.30%. The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.17 EPS. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $205.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $216.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $228.17.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.

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