Truist Financial Increases ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) Price Target to $145.00

Key Points

• Truist Financial raised its price target on ArcBest to $145 (from $95) and maintained a "buy" rating, implying roughly an 8.3% upside; however, the Street consensus remains a "Hold" with an average target near $109.75.
• ArcBest beat Q1 expectations with $0.32 EPS (vs. $0.27) and ~$998.8M revenue, lifting the stock to $133.84, but reported a GAAP net loss of $1.0M and faces freight-margin pressure that could limit gains.
• Management expects a 400–500 basis-point sequential improvement in operating ratio in Q2 tied to the May launch of ArcBest View, a potential near-term catalyst if execution drives margin recovery.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB - Get Free Report) had its price objective increased by stock analysts at Truist Financial from $95.00 to $145.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the transportation company's stock. Truist Financial's target price points to a potential upside of 8.34% from the stock's current price.

ARCB has been the topic of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of ArcBest in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of ArcBest from $116.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on ArcBest from $76.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating on shares of ArcBest in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded ArcBest from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.75.

ArcBest Trading Up 4.8%

ArcBest stock traded up $6.08 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $133.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 23,501 shares, compared to its average volume of 344,892. The stock's fifty day moving average is $102.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of 51.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.42. ArcBest has a 1 year low of $55.19 and a 1 year high of $131.96.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $998.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $989.27 million. ArcBest had a return on equity of 6.51% and a net margin of 1.50%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.51 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that ArcBest will post 4.75 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ArcBest

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec increased its stake in ArcBest by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 22,995 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,706,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of ArcBest by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC now owns 3,710 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 4,431 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $329,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of ArcBest by 26.9% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 675 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Inc. OK grew its position in shares of ArcBest by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 4,375 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $306,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.27% of the company's stock.

ArcBest News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting ArcBest this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Stifel Nicolaus raised its price target to $134 and kept a "buy" rating, increasing analyst confidence in ArcBest’s outlook and providing upward support for the stock. Stifel price target raise
• Positive Sentiment: ArcBest reported Q1 results that beat consensus on EPS (non-GAAP EPS $0.32 vs. $0.27 expected) and revenue (~$998.8M vs. ~$989M consensus), which traders view as evidence the business is stabilizing revenue growth. Q1 press release
• Positive Sentiment: Management expects sequential operating-ratio (OR) improvement of roughly 400–500 basis points in Q2 tied to the May launch of its ArcBest View product — a near-term operational catalyst if execution drives margin recovery. ArcBest OR improvement / ArcBest View
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate governance item: shareholders will vote on reincorporating ArcBest to Texas — a structural change with limited immediate operational impact but worth monitoring for legal/tax implications. Reincorporation vote
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks, Seeking Alpha and other outlets provide metric-by-metric comparisons to Street estimates and the slide deck/transcript is available for investors who want detail on volume trends and segment performance. Use those to assess sustainability of the beat. Zacks Q1 metrics vs. estimates
• Negative Sentiment: On a GAAP basis ArcBest reported a $1.0M net loss (loss of $0.05/share) versus prior-year profit; analysts and investors remain cautious because freight-margin pressure and cost dynamics trimmed profits despite revenue growth. GAAP net loss report
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage noted freight pricing and margin pressure as the key near-term risk that could limit upside if execution on ArcBest View or pricing improvements slips. Monitor upcoming monthly trends and Q2 OR commentary. Freight margin pressure coverage

About ArcBest

ArcBest Corporation NASDAQ: ARCB is a transportation and logistics company that offers comprehensive freight and supply chain solutions across North America. Founded in 1923 as Arkansas Best Freight System, the company has evolved into a diversified service provider with both asset-based and asset-light operations. Its core businesses include less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping through ABF Freight, expedited full-truckload services via Panther Premium Logistics, and a range of logistics and supply chain management services under its ArcBest Integrated Logistics division.

The company's asset-based operations also encompass FleetNet America, a provider of emergency roadside assistance and maintenance services for heavy-duty vehicles.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.