Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Stock Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN)’s stock price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $13.89 and traded as high as $17.31. Marten Transport shares last traded at $16.8650, with a volume of 2,200,635 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens lowered shares of Marten Transport from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Marten Transport from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Zacks Research raised Marten Transport from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded Marten Transport to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Marten Transport Stock Up 0.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 91.95 and a beta of 0.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $16.26 and its 200 day moving average is $13.93.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.01). Marten Transport had a return on equity of 1.89% and a net margin of 1.68%.The business had revenue of $203.53 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $207.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.05 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Marten Transport’s payout ratio is 126.32%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marten Transport

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in Marten Transport during the 4th quarter worth about $10,466,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 128.7% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 924,406 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $10,520,000 after buying an additional 520,274 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Marten Transport by 128.4% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 921,818 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $9,827,000 after acquiring an additional 518,280 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in shares of Marten Transport by 2,296.2% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 444,309 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,736,000 after acquiring an additional 425,767 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 914.7% during the fourth quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 336,522 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,830,000 after acquiring an additional 303,357 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.12% of the company’s stock.

About Marten Transport

Marten Transport, Inc is a North American transportation services provider offering temperature-controlled and dry van truckload services. Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Mondovi, Wisconsin, the company specializes in full truckload, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal and port drayage solutions. Its core focus on refrigerated and produce freight has made it a key partner for food manufacturers, retailers and other shippers requiring strict temperature management.

The company maintains a modern fleet of tractors and trailers equipped with advanced telematics, electronic logging devices and continuous temperature monitoring.