Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Stock Price Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Shares of Werner Enterprises crossed above their 200-day moving average ($30.12), trading as high as $33.66 and last at $33.50 on heavy volume (596,370), up about 2.8% intraday.
• Several analysts raised price targets (TD Cowen and Wells Fargo to $39, UBS to $33), but MarketBeat's consensus remains a Reduce rating with a $33.15 target and a split of 2 Buy / 8 Hold / 5 Sell.
• Werner missed the quarter on EPS ($0.05 vs. $0.09 expected) and revenue was below estimates, the company shows a negative net margin, yet it announced a $0.14 quarterly dividend (annualized yield ~1.7%).

Shares of Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $30.12 and traded as high as $33.66. Werner Enterprises shares last traded at $33.50, with a volume of 596,370 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on WERN shares. TD Cowen increased their price target on Werner Enterprises from $31.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Werner Enterprises from $34.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. UBS Group increased their price target on Werner Enterprises from $25.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Werner Enterprises in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Susquehanna raised their target price on Werner Enterprises from $23.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $33.15.

Werner Enterprises Trading Up 2.8%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 1.95. The firm has a market cap of $2.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -139.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.09.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The transportation company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.04). Werner Enterprises had a positive return on equity of 0.04% and a negative net margin of 0.48%.The company had revenue of $737.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $767.51 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.08 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 0.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 13th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 13th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Werner Enterprises's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -233.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Werner Enterprises

In other Werner Enterprises news, COO Eric J. Downing sold 1,418 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.78, for a total value of $49,318.04. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 55,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,945,801.88. This trade represents a 2.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Werner Enterprises

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 289.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,293 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 961 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 42.0% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,542 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 752 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 41.3% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 49.0% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,429 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 86.9% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,614 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $108,000 after acquiring an additional 1,680 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.32% of the company's stock.

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc, founded in 1956 by Clarence L. “Chris” Werner, is a leading transportation and logistics provider based in Omaha, Nebraska. The company began as a one‐truck operation and has since grown into one of North America's largest carriers, offering an array of services to support diverse supply chains.

Werner's core business activities include full truckload dry van services, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal transport and brokerage solutions. The company also provides value-added services such as warehousing, freight management and fleet maintenance through its network of terminals and service centers.

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.