Nuveen LLC Invests $6.39 Million in Heartland Express, Inc. $HTLD

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired 692,942 shares of Heartland Express, Inc. valued at approximately $6.39 million, increasing its ownership to 0.88% of the company.
• CEO Michael J. Gerdin purchased 24,798 shares at an average cost of $8.19 per share, raising his total ownership to approximately $12.22 million.
• Heartland Express reported a quarterly EPS of ($0.14), missing analyst estimates and experiencing a 23.4% year-over-year revenue decline.

Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 692,942 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $6,389,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.88% of Heartland Express as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 173.8% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,719 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,726 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 1,261.6% in the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 12,472 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 11,556 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express in the first quarter worth approximately $117,000. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 243.6% in the first quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 12,987 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $120,000 after acquiring an additional 9,207 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 44.4% in the first quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 13,858 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $128,000 after acquiring an additional 4,263 shares during the period. 53.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Heartland Express Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HTLD traded up $0.03 on Friday, hitting $8.61. The company's stock had a trading volume of 150,624 shares, compared to its average volume of 566,288. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $8.90. Heartland Express, Inc. has a 1 year low of $7.11 and a 1 year high of $12.85. The company has a market capitalization of $666.50 million, a PE ratio of -18.72 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The transportation company reported ($0.14) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by ($0.06). Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 3.85% and a negative return on equity of 4.42%. The firm had revenue of $210.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $229.12 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.04) earnings per share. Heartland Express's revenue for the quarter was down 23.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Heartland Express, Inc. will post 0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Heartland Express

In related news, CEO Michael J. Gerdin purchased 24,798 shares of Heartland Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $8.19 per share, for a total transaction of $203,095.62. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,491,868 shares in the company, valued at $12,218,398.92. The trade was a 1.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders purchased 30,000 shares of company stock worth $245,752. 40.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on HTLD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Heartland Express from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Heartland Express from $9.00 to $8.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Baird R W upgraded Heartland Express to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Heartland Express from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $9.70.

Heartland Express Profile

Heartland Express, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services.