JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) Stock

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) had its target price increased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $159.00 to $180.00 in a research report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the transportation company's stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Stephens cut their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 7th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $156.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Susquehanna reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $155.00 target price (up from $140.00) on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $164.90.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Trading Down 2.5%

NASDAQ JBHT traded down $3.87 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $148.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 626,952 shares, compared to its average volume of 996,794. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $144.39 and a 200 day moving average of $151.51. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a twelve month low of $122.79 and a twelve month high of $200.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.98, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The transportation company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.03). J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.59% and a return on equity of 14.26%. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.32 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.18%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's payout ratio is 32.00%.

Insider Activity at J.B. Hunt Transport Services

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, COO Nicholas Hobbs bought 1,529 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $130.75 per share, with a total value of $199,916.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 91,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,008,995.25. This trade represents a 1.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JBHT. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 428.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,263,391 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $215,610,000 after purchasing an additional 1,024,295 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the fourth quarter valued at $146,618,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 14.6% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,853,092 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $718,015,000 after acquiring an additional 616,986 shares during the period. Demars Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 16,964.6% in the 4th quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 610,059 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $104,113,000 after acquiring an additional 606,484 shares during the period. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2,408.1% in the 4th quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 213,888 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $36,502,000 after acquiring an additional 205,360 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.95% of the company's stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc provides surface transportation, delivery, and logistic services in the United States. It operates through five segments: Intermodal (JBI), Dedicated Contract Services (DCS), Integrated Capacity Solutions (ICS), Final Mile Services (FMS), and Truckload (JBT). The JBI segment offers intermodal freight solutions.