Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Price Target Cut to $40.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley has lowered its price target for Werner Enterprises from $45.00 to $40.00, while maintaining an "overweight" rating, suggesting a potential upside of 43.18% from the stock's previous close.
• Analysts across several brokerage firms have given mixed ratings for Werner Enterprises, with three Buy ratings, seven Hold, and six Sell ratings, averaging a consensus target price of $28.86.
• Werner Enterprises has authorized a share repurchase program allowing the company to buy back 5,000,000 shares, signaling management's belief that the stock is undervalued.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) had its target price reduced by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $45.00 to $40.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the transportation company's stock. Morgan Stanley's target price would suggest a potential upside of 43.18% from the stock's previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on WERN. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Werner Enterprises in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Werner Enterprises from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Werner Enterprises from $25.00 to $22.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Werner Enterprises from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $28.86.

Werner Enterprises Trading Up 1.8%

WERN stock traded up $0.49 during trading on Monday, hitting $27.94. The company had a trading volume of 131,733 shares, compared to its average volume of 877,541. The stock has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.49, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $27.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.78. Werner Enterprises has a 12 month low of $23.02 and a 12 month high of $42.48.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.06. Werner Enterprises had a return on equity of 0.92% and a net margin of 1.77%.The company had revenue of $753.15 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $736.09 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.17 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Werner Enterprises will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Werner Enterprises declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Monday, August 11th that allows the company to buyback 5,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the transportation company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Werner Enterprises

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Werner Enterprises in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 163.5% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 959 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 595 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in Werner Enterprises by 57.8% in the 2nd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,018 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 373 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 306.9% in the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,294 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 976 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Werner Enterprises by 413.1% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,191 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 1,764 shares during the last quarter. 89.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Werner Enterprises

Werner Enterprises, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in transporting truckload shipments of general commodities in interstate and intrastate commerce in the United States, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Truckload Transportation Services and Werner Logistics.

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