Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Hits Expectations

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The transportation company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.12, Yahoo Finance reports. The business had revenue of $249.67 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $262.77 million. Marten Transport had a return on equity of 9.48% and a net margin of 6.22%. The company’s revenue was down 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.28 earnings per share.

Marten Transport Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ MRTN traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $15.97. 774,130 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 461,460. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.03. Marten Transport has a 1-year low of $15.87 and a 1-year high of $23.38. The firm has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.59 and a beta of 0.79.

Marten Transport Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Marten Transport’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.59%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marten Transport

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 12,565 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marten Transport during the first quarter worth $259,000. Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 11,982 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 846 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 11,183 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $235,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Marten Transport during the second quarter worth $204,000. 69.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Vertical Research raised Marten Transport from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 10th.

About Marten Transport

Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United State, Mexico, and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment, as well as dry freight; and regional short-haul and medium-to-long-haul full-load transportation services.