Teacher Retirement System of Texas Raises Stock Holdings in Marten Transport, Ltd. $MRTN

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in Marten Transport by 22.3%, buying 88,891 shares to hold 487,595 shares (about 0.60% of the company) worth roughly $5.55 million at quarter end.
• Marten Transport reported a quarterly EPS of $0.02, missing consensus and showing revenue down 8.8% year-over-year; the stock trades near $14.80 with a market cap of $1.21 billion and a P/E of 77.9.
• The company pays a $0.06 quarterly dividend (annualized $0.24, ~1.6% yield) but has a high payout ratio (DPR ~126%), while institutional ownership is ~69% and analyst ratings are mixed with an average of "Moderate Buy."

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its holdings in Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN - Free Report) by 22.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 487,595 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 88,891 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned approximately 0.60% of Marten Transport worth $5,549,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 660.8% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,929 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 2,544 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marten Transport in the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 3,553.8% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,873 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 3,767 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Marten Transport in the third quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 378.7% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,610 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 4,438 shares during the period. 69.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marten Transport Price Performance

MRTN opened at $14.80 on Monday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $13.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.06. The company has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 77.90 and a beta of 0.82. Marten Transport, Ltd. has a 52 week low of $9.35 and a 52 week high of $15.42.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $203.53 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $207.20 million. Marten Transport had a return on equity of 1.89% and a net margin of 1.68%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.05 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 17th. Marten Transport's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 126.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Marten Transport from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st. Stephens downgraded Marten Transport from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Marten Transport to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Zacks Research upgraded Marten Transport from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Marten Transport from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

Marten Transport Company Profile

Marten Transport, Inc is a North American transportation services provider offering temperature-controlled and dry van truckload services. Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Mondovi, Wisconsin, the company specializes in full truckload, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal and port drayage solutions. Its core focus on refrigerated and produce freight has made it a key partner for food manufacturers, retailers and other shippers requiring strict temperature management.

The company maintains a modern fleet of tractors and trailers equipped with advanced telematics, electronic logging devices and continuous temperature monitoring.

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