Northern Trust Corp Decreases Stake in Marten Transport, Ltd. $MRTN

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp has decreased its holdings in Marten Transport, Ltd. by 28.4%, now owning 668,880 shares valued at approximately $9.18 million.
• Other hedge funds like Nuance Investments have increased their positions, with a 63.8% increase during the same period, owning over 5.2 million shares now.
• Marten Transport plans to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.06 on September 30th, with a current yield of 2.0% and a payout ratio of 92.31%.

Northern Trust Corp cut its holdings in Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN - Free Report) by 28.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 668,880 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 264,896 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned 0.82% of Marten Transport worth $9,177,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aigen Investment Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 13,648 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $187,000 after buying an additional 774 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 33,049 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $516,000 after buying an additional 1,152 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 44.6% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,428 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 2,291 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 27,927 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $383,000 after buying an additional 2,506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 10.4% during the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 27,603 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 2,593 shares during the last quarter. 69.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marten Transport Stock Performance

Marten Transport stock traded down $0.14 during trading on Monday, reaching $11.60. 696,699 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 573,898. The company's 50-day moving average is $12.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.09. Marten Transport, Ltd. has a 52-week low of $11.43 and a 52-week high of $18.63. The firm has a market cap of $945.63 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.62 and a beta of 0.99.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The transportation company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09. Marten Transport had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 2.72%. The firm had revenue of $229.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $231.09 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.10 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.41 EPS for the current year.

Marten Transport Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be given a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. Marten Transport's dividend payout ratio is presently 92.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded Marten Transport from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $19.00.

Marten Transport Company Profile

Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United State, Mexico, and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment, as well as dry freight; and regional short-haul and medium-to-long-haul full-load transportation services.