Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Key Points

• Landstar shares fell 15.5%, opening at $143.13 after the company reported quarterly EPS of $1.42, below the $1.67 analyst consensus.
• Revenue rose 25.4% year over year to $1.51 billion, slightly exceeding expectations, indicating strong freight-volume growth despite the earnings shortfall.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share; analysts’ consensus rating remains “Hold,” with an average price target of $189.20.

Shares of Landstar System, Inc. (NASDAQ:LSTR - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $168.78, but opened at $143.13. Landstar System shares last traded at $142.9570, with a volume of 62,061 shares traded.

The transportation company reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.25). The business had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.50 billion. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.22 earnings per share.

Landstar System Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 17th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Landstar System's payout ratio is 45.60%.

Key Landstar System News

Here are the key news stories impacting Landstar System this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Landstar reported third-quarter revenue of $1.512 billion, up 25% year over year and slightly ahead of the $1.50 billion consensus estimate. Gross profit increased 14%, while variable contribution rose 25%, indicating solid freight-volume and operating improvement. Landstar third-quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, or $1.76 annualized, representing an approximately 1.0% yield. The dividend provides ongoing shareholder returns, although the ex-dividend date is November 17.
• Positive Sentiment: Robert W. Baird maintained an Outperform rating and lowered its price target from $215 to $195. Despite the reduction, the new target implies approximately 15.5% upside from the referenced price. Robert W. Baird rating

Analyst Ratings Changes

LSTR has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $210.00 price objective (down from $215.00) on shares of Landstar System in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Landstar System in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $179.00 price target on Landstar System in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Landstar System from $182.00 to $178.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Landstar System from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Landstar System presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $189.20.

Institutional Trading of Landstar System

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Landstar System during the second quarter valued at about $698,683,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Landstar System by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,118,554 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $179,315,000 after purchasing an additional 179,294 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Landstar System by 2.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 683,119 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $109,506,000 after purchasing an additional 15,825 shares during the last quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Landstar System by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc now owns 508,778 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $85,803,000 after purchasing an additional 2,193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Landstar System in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $68,507,000. 97.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Landstar System Stock Down 15.5%

The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $172.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $176.75. The firm has a market cap of $4.84 billion, a PE ratio of 36.79 and a beta of 0.90.

Landstar System Company Profile

Landstar System, Inc NASDAQ: LSTR is an asset-light transportation and logistics company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. Through a network of independent owner-operators, agents and third-party capacity providers, the company arranges the movement of freight for commercial and industrial customers.

Landstar's services include truckload transportation, specialized and heavy-haul freight, expedited and time-critical shipping, less-than-truckload transportation, intermodal services and logistics management.

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