UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Buys 414,837 Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Key Points

• UBS Asset Management increased its J.B. Hunt stake by 64.7%, purchasing 414,837 shares to hold 1.06 million shares worth approximately $305.8 million. Institutional investors collectively own 74.95% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $286.30; several firms recently raised their targets, including Stephens to $370.
• J.B. Hunt beat quarterly expectations with $1.91 in EPS versus $1.71 forecast and revenue of $3.50 billion, up 19.4% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, yielding about 0.7% annually.

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) by 64.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,056,398 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 414,837 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 1.12% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services worth $305,753,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board raised its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 3,700 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,071,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. grew its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 8.5% in the second quarter. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. now owns 2,244 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $649,000 after buying an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan grew its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2.3% in the second quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan now owns 10,265 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,971,000 after buying an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2.4% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 154,254 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $44,637,000 after buying an additional 3,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the second quarter worth $4,904,000. Institutional investors own 74.95% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $261.00 price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $280.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Stephens upped their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $310.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Monday, July 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $286.30.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Brian Webb sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.01, for a total transaction of $426,015.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 15,881 shares in the company, valued at $4,510,362.81. The trade was a 8.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Keefauver sold 703 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.13, for a total value of $200,446.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 790 shares in the company, valued at $225,252.70. The trade was a 47.09% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Trading Up 1.7%

JBHT stock opened at $265.47 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $277.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $252.94. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a one year low of $130.12 and a one year high of $299.76. The stock has a market cap of $24.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.30.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The transportation company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 5.31% and a return on equity of 18.75%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.31 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 7.75 EPS for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th were paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's dividend payout ratio is 25.50%.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.

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