J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.43 (NASDAQ:JBHT)

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 25th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of 0.43 per share by the transportation company on Friday, May 24th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services has increased its dividend payment by an average of 15.9% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 21 consecutive years. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a payout ratio of 20.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect J.B. Hunt Transport Services to earn $8.72 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.72 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 19.7%.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

JBHT stock traded down $1.73 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $162.01. 1,241,232 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 997,345. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.74 billion, a PE ratio of 25.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.11. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a 52 week low of $160.07 and a 52 week high of $219.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $192.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $192.06.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on JBHT. UBS Group reduced their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $234.00 to $211.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $218.00 to $200.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $209.00 to $204.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $188.00 to $173.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $215.00 to $205.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $194.24.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO John Kuhlow sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.00, for a total value of $745,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,537 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,244,381. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CFO John Kuhlow sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.00, for a total value of $745,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,537 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,244,381. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Patrick J. Ottensmeyer purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $202.99 per share, for a total transaction of $1,014,950.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,014,950. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,454 shares of company stock valued at $3,283,219 in the last ninety days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.