ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCB) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $121.41 and last traded at $120.1910, with a volume of 19674 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $118.45.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on ARCB. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of ArcBest from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of ArcBest from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of ArcBest in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of ArcBest from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of ArcBest from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 1st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $99.00.

ArcBest Trading Up 2.1%

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.30, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.42. The company’s 50 day moving average is $100.66 and its 200 day moving average is $85.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $972.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $963.74 million. ArcBest had a net margin of 1.50% and a return on equity of 6.51%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.33 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that ArcBest Corporation will post 4.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ArcBest Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th were issued a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 10th. ArcBest’s payout ratio is 18.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ArcBest

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in ArcBest by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,451,162 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $181,852,000 after buying an additional 6,808 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,349,439 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $100,117,000 after purchasing an additional 7,816 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 625.4% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 920,498 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $68,292,000 after purchasing an additional 793,607 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 817,091 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $57,090,000 after purchasing an additional 71,420 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of ArcBest in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,508,000. Institutional investors own 99.27% of the company’s stock.

About ArcBest

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCB) is a transportation and logistics company that offers comprehensive freight and supply chain solutions across North America. Founded in 1923 as Arkansas Best Freight System, the company has evolved into a diversified service provider with both asset-based and asset-light operations. Its core businesses include less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping through ABF Freight, expedited full-truckload services via Panther Premium Logistics, and a range of logistics and supply chain management services under its ArcBest Integrated Logistics division.

The company’s asset-based operations also encompass FleetNet America, a provider of emergency roadside assistance and maintenance services for heavy-duty vehicles.