Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Acquires 49,882 Shares of Werner Enterprises, Inc. $WERN

Key Points

• Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its Werner Enterprises stake by 252.9% in the first quarter, acquiring 49,882 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 69,606 shares valued at approximately $2.05 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Susquehanna upgraded the stock to “positive,” while other firms adjusted targets. The overall consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $41.54.
• Werner’s latest quarter showed pressure, with earnings per share of $0.22 and revenue of $813.36 million both missing analyst estimates. Shares traded at $37.42, while the company maintained a quarterly dividend of $0.14, equivalent to a 1.5% yield.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its holdings in Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN - Free Report) by 252.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 69,606 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 49,882 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio owned approximately 0.12% of Werner Enterprises worth $2,047,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WERN. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 41.3% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 28.3% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,261 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 719 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 86.9% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,614 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $108,000 after purchasing an additional 1,680 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA purchased a new position in shares of Werner Enterprises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $217,000. Finally, Mangrove Partners IM LLC bought a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises in the 4th quarter worth approximately $224,000. 89.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Werner Enterprises from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Susquehanna raised Werner Enterprises from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $44.00 in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $47.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $39.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $37.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Werner Enterprises currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $41.54.

Werner Enterprises Trading Up 1.5%

NASDAQ:WERN opened at $37.42 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.24 billion, a PE ratio of -49.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.46. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.06 and a 12 month high of $47.49.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The transportation company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $813.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $931.12 million. Werner Enterprises had a negative net margin of 1.42% and a positive return on equity of 1.18%. Werner Enterprises's quarterly revenue was up 24.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.11 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 6th were given a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 6th. Werner Enterprises's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -73.68%.

Trending Headlines about Werner Enterprises

Here are the key news stories impacting Werner Enterprises this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Susquehanna upgraded Werner from “neutral” to “positive” and set a $44 price target, while Robert W. Baird raised its rating from “neutral” to “outperform” with a $43 target. Both targets imply meaningful upside from recent trading levels. Susquehanna upgrade article
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan increased its Werner price target to $39, adding another constructive analyst signal despite the target remaining relatively close to the current share price. JPMorgan raises Werner price target
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks reports that WERN has formed a bullish “hammer” chart pattern and entered technically oversold territory after losing roughly 14.6% over four weeks. Rising earnings-estimate revisions could support a near-term trend reversal. Zacks hammer pattern analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Werner’s CEO expressed optimism that crackdowns on “shadow capacity” could reduce unfair or underreported trucking capacity, potentially improving freight pricing and utilization. Werner CEO capacity comments
• Neutral Sentiment: TD Cowen lowered its price target to $41, although the revised target remains above recent trading levels. TD Cowen lowers Werner price target
• Negative Sentiment: Werner’s latest quarter included an earnings-per-share miss and revenue below consensus expectations, which highlights continuing operating pressure despite year-over-year revenue growth. The company also reported a negative net margin. Werner Q2 2026 earnings call summary

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc, founded in 1956 by Clarence L. “Chris” Werner, is a leading transportation and logistics provider based in Omaha, Nebraska. The company began as a one‐truck operation and has since grown into one of North America's largest carriers, offering an array of services to support diverse supply chains.

Werner's core business activities include full truckload dry van services, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal transport and brokerage solutions. The company also provides value-added services such as warehousing, freight management and fleet maintenance through its network of terminals and service centers.

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