J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.19 EPS

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The transportation company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.68 by ($0.19), Zacks reports. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.99% and a return on equity of 16.33%.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Down 2.4%

NASDAQ JBHT traded down $5.44 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $224.17. 1,469,415 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,012,825. The company has a 50 day moving average of $217.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $193.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a 52-week low of $122.79 and a 52-week high of $236.00. The firm has a market cap of $21.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.51, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.22.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This is a positive change from J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.32%.

Insider Activity at J.B. Hunt Transport Services

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, CAO John Kuhlow sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.68, for a total transaction of $225,680.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 17,931 shares in the company, valued at $4,046,668.08. This represents a 5.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Ronald Greer Woodruff sold 331 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.57, for a total value of $74,663.67. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $906,565.83. The trade was a 7.61% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 25,945 shares of company stock worth $5,656,495 over the last quarter. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 16.5% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 7,253 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029 shares during the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. purchased a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $282,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 19.5% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 503,738 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $97,896,000 after buying an additional 82,084 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 27.5% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 49,865 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $9,691,000 after buying an additional 10,753 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury grew its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 119.4% during the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 20,470 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,150,000 after buying an additional 11,140 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on JBHT shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $173.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Citigroup lowered J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $175.00 to $221.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Evercore set a $222.00 price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Friday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $176.00 to $211.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $201.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $208.86.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.