Werner Enterprises, Inc. $WERN Shares Purchased by Allianz Asset Management GmbH

Key Points

• Allianz Asset Management increased its stake in Werner Enterprises by 47.2%, owning 376,736 shares valued at approximately $10.3 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Werner Enterprises reported $0.11 EPS for the recent quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a share buyback plan for 5 million shares, indicating potential undervaluation.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.9%, and has a payout ratio of 65.12%.

Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its position in shares of Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN - Free Report) by 47.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 376,736 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 120,749 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned 0.61% of Werner Enterprises worth $10,307,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 163.5% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 959 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 595 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 306.9% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,294 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 413.1% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,191 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,764 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 15.9% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,937 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $86,000 after acquiring an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Werner Enterprises in the second quarter worth $225,000. 89.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Werner Enterprises Stock Performance

NASDAQ WERN opened at $28.83 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $27.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.65. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a twelve month low of $23.02 and a twelve month high of $42.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a market capitalization of $1.72 billion, a PE ratio of 33.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.06.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.06. Werner Enterprises had a return on equity of 0.92% and a net margin of 1.77%.The firm had revenue of $753.15 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $736.09 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.17 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Werner Enterprises announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Monday, August 11th that permits the company to buyback 5,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 6th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 6th. Werner Enterprises's payout ratio is 65.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI cut their price target on Werner Enterprises from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Weiss Ratings cut Werner Enterprises from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on Werner Enterprises in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Susquehanna cut their price target on Werner Enterprises from $27.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded Werner Enterprises from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $24.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and seven have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $27.57.

Werner Enterprises Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in transporting truckload shipments of general commodities in interstate and intrastate commerce in the United States, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Truckload Transportation Services and Werner Logistics.

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