Nuveen LLC Purchases Shares of 592,797 Marten Transport, Ltd. $MRTN

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Marten Transport, Ltd., purchasing 592,797 shares valued at approximately $8.13 million, constituting 0.73% of the company.
• The stock received upgrades from analysts, with one investment analyst rating it as a "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $19.00.
• Marten Transport recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.06 per share, with a dividend yield of 1.9%, and its payout ratio stands at 92.31%.

Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 592,797 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $8,133,000. Nuveen LLC owned approximately 0.73% of Marten Transport at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Marten Transport by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,210,598 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $57,769,000 after buying an additional 14,680 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 1.6% during the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,135,484 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $56,739,000 after purchasing an additional 63,916 shares during the period. Geneva Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 0.5% during the first quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 3,155,503 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $43,294,000 after purchasing an additional 15,223 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 7.4% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,099,809 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $15,089,000 after purchasing an additional 75,692 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 933,776 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $14,576,000 after purchasing an additional 40,237 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Marten Transport from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $19.00.

Marten Transport Price Performance

NASDAQ MRTN traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $11.88. 80,060 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 509,241. Marten Transport, Ltd. has a one year low of $11.57 and a one year high of $18.63. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $13.28. The stock has a market cap of $968.38 million, a P/E ratio of 45.67 and a beta of 0.98.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 business had revenue of $229.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $231.09 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.10 earnings per share. Marten Transport's quarterly revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 16th. Marten Transport's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 92.31%.

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.