UBS Group AG Boosts Stake in Heartland Express, Inc. $HTLD

UBS Group AG increased its stake in shares of Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) by 90.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 529,514 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 251,670 shares during the period. UBS Group AG’s holdings in Heartland Express were worth $4,782,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Heartland Express by 72.7% during the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 1,153,238 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $9,664,000 after purchasing an additional 485,658 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in Heartland Express by 150.6% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 799,491 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,700,000 after acquiring an additional 480,488 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its stake in Heartland Express by 91.0% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 812,248 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $6,807,000 after purchasing an additional 386,961 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Heartland Express by 1,241.6% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 143,260 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,201,000 after purchasing an additional 132,582 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in Heartland Express in the first quarter valued at $907,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.45% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HTLD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Heartland Express from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Heartland Express from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Heartland Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $12.00 price objective on shares of Heartland Express in a research report on Friday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $12.20.

Heartland Express Price Performance

Heartland Express stock opened at $14.28 on Friday. Heartland Express, Inc. has a 52-week low of $6.99 and a 52-week high of $14.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $11.52 and a 200-day moving average of $10.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -25.50 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The transportation company reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.07. Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 5.69% and a negative return on equity of 3.70%. The company had revenue of $153.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $177.30 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.18) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 19.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Heartland Express, Inc. will post 0.04 EPS for the current year.

Heartland Express Profile

Heartland Express, Inc (NASDAQ: HTLD) is a publicly traded truckload carrier headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa. The company specializes in full truckload transportation, offering dry-van services that connect shippers with customers across the continental United States. Its primary focus is on over-the-road freight movements, serving industries such as manufacturing, retail, and consumer goods.

Founded in 1978 as Heartland Motor Freight, the company has grown from a regional carrier into one of the larger U.S.