Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) Stock Price

Key Points

• Wells Fargo raised its price target on Landstar from $170 to $200 and kept an "overweight" rating, implying about a 6.3% upside from the stock's then-current price.
• Landstar beat Q1 expectations with $1.16 EPS and $1.171B revenue, reported improved profitability and cash flow, and the board approved a share repurchase program equal to roughly 3.3% of outstanding shares.
• Overall analyst sentiment is mixed: the MarketBeat consensus is an average "Hold" with a mean price target around $173.45, despite several recent price-target increases.

Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR - Get Free Report) had its target price raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $170.00 to $200.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the transportation company's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price points to a potential upside of 6.30% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on LSTR. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Landstar System from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Landstar System from $134.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Barclays raised their price objective on Landstar System from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Landstar System in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Landstar System from $147.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $173.45.

Landstar System Trading Up 3.1%

Shares of NASDAQ LSTR traded up $5.73 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $188.14. The stock had a trading volume of 284,518 shares, compared to its average volume of 529,924. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Landstar System has a 1-year low of $119.32 and a 1-year high of $195.84. The company has a market capitalization of $6.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.59 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $160.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $147.67.

Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.15 billion. Landstar System had a net margin of 2.42% and a return on equity of 17.68%. Landstar System's revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.95 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Landstar System will post 5.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Landstar System declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, April 28th that allows the company to repurchase 1,115,195,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the transportation company to reacquire up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Landstar System

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in shares of Landstar System by 151,424.4% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 6,294,325 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $904,495,000 after purchasing an additional 6,290,171 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Landstar System by 185.5% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 987,087 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $141,844,000 after buying an additional 641,319 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Landstar System by 910.2% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 541,880 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $77,868,000 after buying an additional 488,238 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in Landstar System by 5,643.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 386,758 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $55,577,000 after acquiring an additional 380,024 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Landstar System by 99.5% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 742,215 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $105,877,000 after acquiring an additional 370,253 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.95% of the company's stock.

Key Landstar System News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 earnings beat — Landstar reported EPS of $1.16 vs. consensus ~$1.11 and revenue of $1.171B (up ~1.6% y/y). Management provided slides/press release with the results. Landstar Q1 Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Board authorized share repurchases — the board approved a buyback program allowing repurchases equal to roughly 3.3% of outstanding shares, signaling management thinks the stock is attractive at current levels. Buyback Report
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability and cash flow improved — quarter showed big year-over-year gains in gross profit and operating profit, net income +32% y/y, and operating cash flow increased materially, supporting capital returns and buybacks. Quiver Summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Quarterly dividend declared — Landstar set a $0.40 quarterly dividend (annualized yield ~0.9%); record/ex-div date May 19 and payable June 9. This is a modest yield but adds to shareholder returns.
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript available — investors can review management commentary and Q&A for guidance and contract/mix details. Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Top-line growth remains modest and margins thin — revenue grew only ~1.6% y/y and net margin was about 2.4%, and some outlets note revenue was essentially in line with or slightly below some expectations; investors should watch whether growth accelerates in coming quarters. Zacks Analysis

About Landstar System

Landstar System, Inc provides integrated transportation management solutions through a network of independent agents and third-party capacity providers. The company specializes in truckload brokerage, intermodal, air and ocean freight, expedited and heavy-haul services, along with value-added offerings such as cargo insurance, customs brokerage and supply chain management. Landstar's proprietary technology platform enables real-time load matching, shipment tracking and data analytics to optimize fleet utilization and improve customer service.

Founded in 1968 and headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Landstar pioneered an asset-light brokerage model that has evolved into a global logistics operation.

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