Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) PT Lowered to $12.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) had its target price decreased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $13.00 to $12.00 in a report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on HTLD. StockNews.com upgraded Heartland Express from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Heartland Express from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Heartland Express currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $13.50.

Heartland Express Price Performance

NASDAQ:HTLD opened at $10.33 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $11.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.86. Heartland Express has a 12 month low of $10.00 and a 12 month high of $17.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported ($0.19) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $270.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $263.92 million. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 1.49% and a negative net margin of 1.13%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.16 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Heartland Express will post -0.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 26th were given a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 25th. Heartland Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently -47.06%.

Insider Activity

In other Heartland Express news, major shareholder Ann S. Gerdin Revocable Trust bought 14,933 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $12.39 per share, with a total value of $185,019.87. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 159,865 shares in the company, valued at $1,980,727.35. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 39.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heartland Express

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Graham Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Heartland Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $244,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Heartland Express in the 3rd quarter valued at $258,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Heartland Express by 133.2% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 18,082 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 10,327 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Heartland Express during the 4th quarter worth $327,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC increased its holdings in Heartland Express by 7.5% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 23,644 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $347,000 after buying an additional 1,654 shares during the last quarter. 53.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Heartland Express Company Profile

Heartland Express, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services.