J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded J.B. Hunt Transport Services from “hold” to “buy,” adding to a broader wave of positive analyst sentiment on the stock.
• Several firms recently raised their price targets, including Wells Fargo to $310 and Susquehanna to $290, while the consensus rating remains “Moderate Buy” with an average target price of $233.83.
• The company beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.49 EPS versus $1.45 expected and revenue of $3.06 billion, up 4.6% year over year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on JBHT. Benchmark increased their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $209.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Susquehanna increased their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $233.83.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

JBHT opened at $284.95 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $245.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $218.05. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a 1 year low of $130.12 and a 1 year high of $289.95. The stock has a market cap of $26.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.11, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.30.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 17.30% and a net margin of 5.13%.The company had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.17 EPS. The business's revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services will post 7.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Darren P. Field sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.49, for a total transaction of $1,017,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 8,696 shares in the company, valued at $2,213,045.04. This represents a 31.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Nicholas Hobbs sold 1,272 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $250.75, for a total value of $318,954.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 91,736 shares in the company, valued at $23,002,802. This trade represents a 1.37% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 15,916 shares of company stock valued at $4,109,634 in the last quarter. Insiders own 2.50% of the company's stock.

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

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in JBHT. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 39.1% during the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 178 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 34.3% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 19,800.0% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 199 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 74.95% of the company's stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

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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