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

Key Points

• Heartland Express, Inc. has received a consensus rating of "Reduce" from five brokerages, with two analysts issuing sell ratings and three assigning hold ratings.
• The company reported quarterly earnings of ($0.14) per share, missing the consensus estimate and reflecting a 23.4% decline in revenue compared to the same quarter last year.
• Insider trading activity has increased, with CEO Michael J. Gerdin buying approximately 148,272 shares and other insiders acquiring significant shares, indicating growing confidence in the company.

Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Reduce" from the five brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and three have issued a hold recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $9.63.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Baird R W upgraded shares of Heartland Express to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $9.00 to $8.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Heartland Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $11.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st.

Heartland Express Price Performance

HTLD traded down $0.28 during trading on Friday, reaching $7.84. The stock had a trading volume of 837,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 531,865. The firm has a market capitalization of $615.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.04 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Heartland Express has a 1-year low of $7.11 and a 1-year high of $13.23. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $8.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $9.38.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The transportation company reported ($0.14) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.08) by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $210.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $229.12 million. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 4.42% and a negative net margin of 3.85%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 23.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.04) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Heartland Express will post 0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, June 23rd were issued a $0.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 23rd. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. Heartland Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -17.39%.

Insider Transactions at Heartland Express

In related news, Director James G. Pratt acquired 6,571 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $8.96 per share, for a total transaction of $58,876.16. Following the acquisition, the director owned 30,000 shares in the company, valued at $268,800. This trade represents a 28.05% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Ann S. Gerdin Revocable Trust acquired 167,644 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $8.95 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,413.80. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 1,214,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,869,775. This trade represents a 16.01% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 619,031 shares of company stock worth $5,125,232. 40.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heartland Express

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Heartland Express by 173.8% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,719 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 1,726 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Heartland Express by 317.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,236 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $300,000 after buying an additional 2,460 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $79,000. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $105,000. 53.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Heartland Express Company Profile

Heartland Express, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services.