ZTO Express (Cayman) (NYSE:ZTO) Posts Earnings Results

Key Points

• ZTO Express (Cayman) reported earnings of $0.34 per share, significantly missing analysts' estimates of $2.90 by $2.56.
• The stock price dropped to $19.75, with a market cap of $11.82 billion and a PE ratio of 12.50.
• Analyst ratings have varied, with JPMorgan moving the stock rating to "overweight" but lowering the target price to $21.00, while other firms have cut their ratings or price targets.

ZTO Express (Cayman) (NYSE:ZTO - Get Free Report) released its earnings results on Tuesday. The transportation company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.90 by ($2.56), Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.03 billion. ZTO Express (Cayman) had a net margin of 18.83% and a return on equity of 14.44%. The business's revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.16 EPS.

ZTO Express (Cayman) Price Performance

Shares of ZTO remained flat at $19.08 on Friday. The company had a trading volume of 1,946,397 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,285,935. The stock has a market cap of $11.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.89, a PEG ratio of 12.32 and a beta of -0.18. The company's fifty day moving average is $18.90 and its 200-day moving average is $18.91. ZTO Express has a 1-year low of $16.34 and a 1-year high of $27.50.

ZTO Express (Cayman) Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a dividend yield of 330.0%. ZTO Express (Cayman)'s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.95%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ZTO Express (Cayman)

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in ZTO Express (Cayman) by 29.3% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 468,489 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $8,316,000 after buying an additional 106,180 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in ZTO Express (Cayman) by 22.9% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 175,128 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $3,475,000 after buying an additional 32,663 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in ZTO Express (Cayman) by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 32,424 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $576,000 after buying an additional 1,177 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in ZTO Express (Cayman) by 76.4% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 27,983 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $497,000 after buying an additional 12,120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in ZTO Express (Cayman) during the 1st quarter valued at $421,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on ZTO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded ZTO Express (Cayman) from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $23.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen cut ZTO Express (Cayman) from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Morgan Stanley set a $24.20 price target on ZTO Express (Cayman) in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of ZTO Express (Cayman) from $26.40 to $22.60 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on ZTO Express (Cayman) from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $22.36.

ZTO Express (Cayman) Company Profile

ZTO Express (Cayman) Inc provides express delivery and other value-added logistics services in the People's Republic of China. It offers freight forwarding services; and delivery services for e-commerce and traditional merchants, and other express service users. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Shanghai, the People's Republic of China.