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 lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $150.00 to $159.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the transportation company's stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $193.00 to $164.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Susquehanna reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $155.00 price target (up from $140.00) on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $190.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $150.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Ten 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $163.43.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock traded down $1.09 on Tuesday, reaching $153.57. The stock had a trading volume of 884,745 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,001,933. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a 1 year low of $122.79 and a 1 year high of $200.40. The company has a market cap of $15.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The business's 50 day moving average is $142.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $152.06.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.02. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 14.07%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that J.B. Hunt Transport Services will post 6.37 EPS for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Nicholas Hobbs purchased 1,529 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $130.75 per share, for a total transaction of $199,916.75. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer directly owned 91,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,008,995.25. The trade was a 1.69% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in JBHT. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 33.9% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 340 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 39.6% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,206 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,199 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $205,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH bought a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $255,000. Finally, Atria Investments Inc lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 42.5% during the 4th quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 4,167 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $711,000 after acquiring an additional 1,242 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.95% of the company's stock.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

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.