Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) Given Average Recommendation of "Reduce" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Reduce consensus from seven analysts (3 sell, 3 hold, 1 strong buy) with an average 12‑month price target of $10.20.
• Q4 results: EPS of ($0.06) beat estimates by $0.01, but revenue dropped 26.1% YoY to $157.7M, leaving a negative net margin (‑6.51%) and ROE (‑4.79%).
• Company announced a $0.02 quarterly dividend (annualized $0.08, ~0.8% yield); market cap is about $824M and the 52‑week range is $6.99–$12.13.

Shares of Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Reduce" from the seven research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $10.20.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Heartland Express from $8.50 to $11.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Heartland Express in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $9.00 price objective on Heartland Express in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Barclays upped their target price on Heartland Express from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $12.00 target price on Heartland Express and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 5th.

Heartland Express Stock Up 1.2%

HTLD opened at $10.64 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a market cap of $824.17 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.65 and a beta of 1.11. Heartland Express has a one year low of $6.99 and a one year high of $12.13. The business's fifty day moving average is $10.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.36.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The transportation company reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.01. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 4.79% and a negative net margin of 6.51%.The business had revenue of $157.68 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $194.54 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.12) EPS. The business's revenue was down 26.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Heartland Express will post 0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 24th will be given a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 24th. Heartland Express's dividend payout ratio is currently -11.76%.

Institutional Trading of Heartland Express

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HTLD. Magnolia Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Heartland Express during the 3rd quarter worth about $4,062,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 13.4% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,408,307 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $12,168,000 after buying an additional 166,717 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 11.6% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,241,432 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $10,727,000 after buying an additional 128,702 shares during the period. Gate City Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Heartland Express by 167.6% during the second quarter. Gate City Capital Management LLC now owns 1,611,581 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $13,924,000 after acquiring an additional 1,009,388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning grew its stake in Heartland Express by 274.1% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 77,907 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $673,000 after acquiring an additional 57,080 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.45% of the company's stock.

Heartland Express Company Profile

Heartland Express, Inc NASDAQ: HTLD is a publicly traded truckload carrier headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa. The company specializes in full truckload transportation, offering dry-van services that connect shippers with customers across the continental United States. Its primary focus is on over-the-road freight movements, serving industries such as manufacturing, retail, and consumer goods.

Founded in 1978 as Heartland Motor Freight, the company has grown from a regional carrier into one of the larger U.S.

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