Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 400,926 Shares of Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. $ODFL

Key Points

• Vanguard trimmed its stake in Old Dominion Freight Line by 1.7%, selling 400,926 shares and retaining 22,851,995 shares (about 10.93% of the company) valued at roughly $3.58 billion.
• Insiders have been net sellers recently—80,134 shares were sold in the last 90 days (including Earl Congdon's 25,000-share sale for ~$4.9M)—and corporate insiders now own about 10% of the stock.
• Old Dominion reported an EPS beat ($1.14 vs. $1.03), raised its quarterly dividend to $0.29 (annualized $1.16, ~0.5% yield), and trades with a market cap of ~$46.2B while analysts' consensus is a Hold with a $197.38 target.

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 22,851,995 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 400,926 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 10.93% of Old Dominion Freight Line worth $3,583,193,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ODFL. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 4,366,843 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $614,764,000 after purchasing an additional 776,004 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 21.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,544,588 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $499,007,000 after purchasing an additional 622,275 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line during the 3rd quarter valued at about $292,599,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,054,044 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $289,168,000 after purchasing an additional 120,564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 637.5% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 1,576,470 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $221,935,000 after purchasing an additional 1,362,697 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.82% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Earl E. Congdon sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $196.13, for a total value of $4,903,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 2,162,113 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $424,055,222.69. This represents a 1.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Bradley R. Gabosch sold 3,134 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.27, for a total transaction of $608,842.18. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 11,278 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,190,977.06. This represents a 21.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 80,134 shares of company stock valued at $15,640,132. 10.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Old Dominion Freight Line Trading Up 0.6%

Old Dominion Freight Line stock opened at $221.77 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $200.34 and a 200 day moving average of $172.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.92, a P/E/G ratio of 4.62 and a beta of 1.20. Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. has a 12-month low of $126.01 and a 12-month high of $227.08.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The transportation company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.11. Old Dominion Freight Line had a net margin of 18.62% and a return on equity of 24.03%. On average, analysts predict that Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th were issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. This is a positive change from Old Dominion Freight Line's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Old Dominion Freight Line's payout ratio is currently 24.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ODFL shares. Truist Financial set a $225.00 price target on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Argus raised shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $220.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $205.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $232.00 price target on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $197.38.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line is a U.S.-based less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation company that provides regional, inter-regional and national freight services. Founded in 1934 and headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, the company has grown from a regional carrier into a national freight network, operating a broad system of service centers and terminals to move shipments for shippers of varying sizes and industries.

The company's core business is LTL trucking, offering scheduled pickup and delivery for palletized freight that does not require a full truckload.

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