Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Sets New 52-Week Low - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Marten Transport reached a new 12-month low of $12.40 per share, prompting questions about the potential for investors to sell their holdings.
• Analysts at Wall Street Zen downgraded the stock's rating from "hold" to "sell," indicating deteriorating confidence in its performance.
• The recent quarterly earnings report showed a 6.6% decline in revenue compared to the previous year, with earnings per share meeting expectations at $0.09.

Shares of Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $12.40 and last traded at $12.46, with a volume of 117880 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $12.55.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Marten Transport from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd.

Marten Transport Price Performance

The firm's fifty day moving average price is $13.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.76. The stock has a market cap of $964.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.54 and a beta of 0.98.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The transportation company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.09. Marten Transport had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 2.72%. The firm had revenue of $229.92 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $231.09 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. Marten Transport's dividend payout ratio is currently 92.31%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marten Transport

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MRTN. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marten Transport in the 4th quarter worth about $878,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of Marten Transport in the 4th quarter worth about $181,000. LPL Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 33,447 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $522,000 after acquiring an additional 2,267 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 875,304 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $13,663,000 after acquiring an additional 189,996 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Marten Transport in the 4th quarter worth about $2,121,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.12% of the company's stock.

Marten Transport Company Profile

Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United State, Mexico, and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment, as well as dry freight; and regional short-haul and medium-to-long-haul full-load transportation services.