Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Makes New Investment in Werner Enterprises, Inc. $WERN

Key Points

• Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd disclosed a new first-quarter stake in Werner Enterprises, buying 65,508 shares worth about $1.93 million and ending with roughly 0.11% ownership.
• Institutional interest appears strong overall, with multiple firms increasing their positions and 89.32% of the stock now held by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Analyst sentiment has improved somewhat, with recent upgrades and higher price targets, but the stock still carries a Hold consensus rating and an average target of $39.92.

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 65,508 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $1,927,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd owned 0.11% of Werner Enterprises at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

WERN has been the subject of several research reports. Stephens raised Werner Enterprises to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen raised Werner Enterprises from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Evercore upgraded Werner Enterprises from an "underperform" rating to an "in-line" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $37.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $39.92.

Werner Enterprises Stock Up 3.8%

WERN opened at $44.78 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -298.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.26. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a one year low of $23.06 and a one year high of $45.27. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $40.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.03) by $0.05. Werner Enterprises had a positive return on equity of 0.66% and a negative net margin of 0.28%.The company had revenue of $730.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $812.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.12) earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 0.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

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

About Werner Enterprises

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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