J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Consensus "Moderate Buy": Twenty-four analysts rate JBHT an average "Moderate Buy" (12 buys, 11 holds, 1 strong buy) with a mean 12‑month price target of $203.00.
• Mixed insider activity: EVP Spencer Frazier made small open‑market purchases (~205 shares total), but other insiders sold larger blocks (including 1,391 and 2,238 shares), with insiders selling 25,945 shares worth roughly $5.66M over the last three months.
• Quarterly results and payouts: JBHT beat EPS estimates ($1.90 vs. $1.81) while revenue fell ~1.6% YoY, and the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.45 (annualized $1.80, ~0.9% yield).

Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the twenty-four research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twelve have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $203.00.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on JBHT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $169.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Vertical Research downgraded shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Barclays upped their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Monday, January 12th.

Key Headlines Impacting J.B. Hunt Transport Services

Here are the key news stories impacting J.B. Hunt Transport Services this week:

• Positive Sentiment: EVP Spencer Frazier made a series of small open‑market purchases across multiple dates (multiple transactions totaling ~205 shares), modestly increasing his stake to roughly 6,100–6,200 shares. Insider buying from a senior exec is generally viewed positively as a signal of confidence. SEC filing
• Neutral Sentiment: The purchases are very small (each trade is usually a dozen or a few dozen shares) and represent only a ~0.1–0.4% increase in his position per trade; collectively they are unlikely to move the stock materially on their own. Investors should treat this as a modest confidence signal rather than a catalyst. MarketBeat JBHT
• Negative Sentiment: Fundamentals and technical context temper the impact of insider buying: most recent quarterly revenue was roughly flat/down year‑over‑year and the stock is below its 50‑day moving average, which can weigh on sentiment even when insiders buy. Those factors likely explain continued downside pressure despite the insider purchases. MarketBeat JBHT

Insider Buying and Selling

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, EVP Ronald Greer Woodruff sold 1,391 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.00, for a total transaction of $287,937.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,019 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $831,933. This represents a 25.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jennifer Boattini sold 2,238 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.00, for a total transaction of $519,216.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 16,650 shares in the company, valued at $3,862,800. This represents a 11.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 25,945 shares of company stock valued at $5,656,495 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On J.B. Hunt Transport Services

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of JBHT. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 178 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 34.3% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 19,800.0% during the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 199 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.95% of the company's stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

Shares of JBHT stock opened at $200.25 on Friday. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a twelve month low of $122.79 and a twelve month high of $236.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $215.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $181.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.23.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The transportation company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.81 by $0.09. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.99% and a return on equity of 16.33%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.53 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that J.B. Hunt Transport Services will post 6.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, February 6th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This is an increase from J.B. Hunt Transport Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.32%.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.

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