ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) Stock Price Crosses Below Fifty Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• ArcBest shares fell below their 50-day moving average, trading as low as $128.79 before closing at $131.14, below the $136.18 average.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $154.23, despite mixed individual ratings.
• The company exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $2.38 EPS on $1.18 billion in revenue, while insiders have sold shares worth approximately $1.79 million over the past 90 days.

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCB - Get Free Report)'s stock price crossed below its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $136.18 and traded as low as $128.79. ArcBest shares last traded at $131.14, with a volume of 227,345 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on ArcBest from $117.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $172.00 price objective on shares of ArcBest in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of ArcBest in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Citigroup restated a "market outperform" rating on shares of ArcBest in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of ArcBest from $145.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $154.23.

ArcBest Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 190.06, a PEG ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $136.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $132.30.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $2.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.12. ArcBest had a return on equity of 7.92% and a net margin of 0.39%.The business had revenue of $1.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.36 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that ArcBest Corporation will post 6.98 earnings per share for the current year.

ArcBest Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th were paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. ArcBest's dividend payout ratio is currently 69.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Jason Parks sold 855 shares of ArcBest stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.09, for a total transaction of $115,501.95. Following the sale, the vice president owned 3,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $512,531.46. The trade was a 18.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Erin Gattis sold 6,163 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $862,820.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 24,286 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,400,040. This trade represents a 20.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,818 shares of company stock valued at $1,793,568. 0.98% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ArcBest

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of ArcBest in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $503,476,000. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ArcBest during the fourth quarter worth approximately $20,402,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of ArcBest during the second quarter worth approximately $27,281,000. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ArcBest during the second quarter worth $20,787,000. Finally, Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 32.5% during the second quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. now owns 535,746 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $76,901,000 after purchasing an additional 131,400 shares during the period. 99.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ArcBest Company Profile

ArcBest Corporation NASDAQ: ARCB is a logistics company that provides freight transportation and supply chain services to businesses in North America and international markets. Headquartered in Fort Smith, Arkansas, the company serves manufacturers, distributors, retailers and other commercial customers through a combination of asset-based transportation and asset-light logistics solutions.

ArcBest's asset-based operations are conducted primarily through ABF Freight, a less-than-truckload carrier that transports palletized freight and offers regional, interregional and long-distance services.

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