Weiss Ratings Reaffirms "Sell (D+)" Rating for Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reaffirmed a "Sell (D+)" rating for Marten Transport, while Wall Street Zen has downgraded the stock from "Hold" to "Sell".
• Marten Transport's stock price currently sits at $11.06, significantly below its 52-week high of $18.63, with analysts projecting an average price target of $19.00.
• In its latest earnings report, Marten Transport reported earnings per share of $0.09, matching expectations, but experienced a 6.6% annual revenue decline.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d+)" rating restated by equities researchers at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Marten Transport from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marten Transport presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $19.00.

Marten Transport Stock Performance

NASDAQ MRTN opened at $11.06 on Wednesday. Marten Transport has a 52-week low of $10.35 and a 52-week high of $18.63. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.64. The company has a market capitalization of $901.61 million, a PE ratio of 42.54 and a beta of 0.95.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The transportation company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.09. The firm had revenue of $229.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $231.09 million. Marten Transport had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 2.72%. The company's revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.10 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Marten Transport will post 0.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marten Transport

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Marten Transport by 5.1% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 120,101 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,648,000 after purchasing an additional 5,874 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 27.3% in the 1st quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 183,399 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $2,516,000 after acquiring an additional 39,300 shares during the last quarter. Nuance Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 63.8% in the 1st quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 5,237,442 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $71,858,000 after acquiring an additional 2,040,631 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Marten Transport in the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,216,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,135,484 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $56,739,000 after acquiring an additional 63,916 shares during the last quarter. 69.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

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