Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Stock Rating Upgraded by The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Free Report) from a sell rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has $39.00 price objective on the transportation company's stock, up from their previous price objective of $25.00.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Werner Enterprises in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $33.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded Werner Enterprises from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $30.77.

Werner Enterprises Price Performance

NASDAQ:WERN traded up $0.86 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $26.83. 847,735 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 837,708. Werner Enterprises has a 12 month low of $23.02 and a 12 month high of $42.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The company has a market capitalization of $1.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.78 and a beta of 1.09. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $27.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.70.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The transportation company reported ($0.12) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.12 by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $712.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $738.41 million. Werner Enterprises had a return on equity of 2.27% and a net margin of 1.13%. The company's revenue was down 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.14 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Werner Enterprises will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 7th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 7th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. Werner Enterprises's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 193.10%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Werner Enterprises

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WERN. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises during the fourth quarter worth about $35,257,000. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in Werner Enterprises in the 4th quarter worth about $31,634,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 1,642.2% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 620,855 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $18,191,000 after purchasing an additional 585,218 shares during the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Werner Enterprises during the first quarter worth $9,102,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Werner Enterprises by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,987,187 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $71,380,000 after buying an additional 234,811 shares in the last quarter. 89.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

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.