Hub Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HUBG) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Hub Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HUBG) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,170,000 shares, a growth of 130.7% from the October 31st total of 507,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 532,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.2 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Hub Group from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Hub Group from $43.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group boosted their price target on Hub Group from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Hub Group from $45.00 to $43.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $47.00 price target on shares of Hub Group in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hub Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.83.

Hub Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HUBG traded down $0.05 during trading on Friday, reaching $51.64. The company had a trading volume of 394,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 467,620. Hub Group has a 52 week low of $37.35 and a 52 week high of $53.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.30. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $46.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $44.62. The stock has a market cap of $3.17 billion, a PE ratio of 29.34 and a beta of 0.89.

Hub Group (NASDAQ:HUBG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The transportation company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.03. Hub Group had a return on equity of 7.44% and a net margin of 2.74%. The company had revenue of $986.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.49 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Hub Group will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Hub Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. Hub Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.41%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in HUBG. American International Group Inc. boosted its stake in Hub Group by 98.2% during the 1st quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 33,893 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,465,000 after acquiring an additional 16,795 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Hub Group by 111.3% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 42,792 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,850,000 after buying an additional 22,542 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lifted its holdings in Hub Group by 81.8% during the first quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 7,721 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 3,475 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new position in Hub Group in the first quarter valued at about $352,000. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in shares of Hub Group by 90.6% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 63,204 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,732,000 after purchasing an additional 30,052 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.77% of the company’s stock.

Hub Group Company Profile

Hub Group, Inc, a supply chain solutions provider, offers transportation and logistics management services in North America. The company's transportation services include intermodal, truckload, less-than-truckload, flatbed, temperature-controlled, and dedicated and regional trucking, as well as final mile, railcar, small parcel, and international transportation.