Werner Enterprises, Inc. $WERN Shares Bought by Deprince Race & Zollo Inc.

Key Points

• Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. increased its Werner Enterprises stake by 11.1% in the first quarter, ending with 3.06 million shares valued at about $89.8 million. The holding now represents 1.7% of its portfolio and is its second-largest position.
• Werner Enterprises reported better-than-expected earnings of $0.02 per share for the quarter, but revenue came in below estimates at $730.14 million. Revenue still rose 13.6% year over year, and analysts expect full-year EPS of 0.94.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, payable July 22, which equals an annualized yield of about 1.3%. Meanwhile, Wall Street sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $37.77.

Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN - Free Report) by 11.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,055,017 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 304,983 shares during the period. Werner Enterprises comprises 1.7% of Deprince Race & Zollo Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. owned about 5.10% of Werner Enterprises worth $89,848,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 41.3% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 49.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,429 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in Werner Enterprises by 28.3% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,261 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 719 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 86.9% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA acquired a new stake in Werner Enterprises during the 4th quarter worth $217,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.32% of the company's stock.

Werner Enterprises Price Performance

Shares of WERN stock opened at $43.82 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The company has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a PE ratio of -292.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.26. The firm's 50-day moving average is $39.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.65. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.06 and a 12 month high of $45.27.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $0.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $730.14 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $812.50 million. Werner Enterprises had a negative net margin of 0.28% and a positive return on equity of 0.66%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.12) EPS. Analysts predict that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 6th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Werner Enterprises's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -373.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WERN shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $39.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Werner Enterprises from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Werner Enterprises from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Werner Enterprises from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Werner Enterprises from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Werner Enterprises has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $37.77.

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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