Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 4,921 Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) by 5.9% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 87,985 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 4,921 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services were worth $18,644,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 45.8% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 56,809 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,712,000 after buying an additional 17,839 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the second quarter worth $539,000. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 71.7% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 9,684 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,882,000 after acquiring an additional 4,043 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 48.6% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 13,849 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,692,000 after acquiring an additional 4,527 shares during the period. Finally, Greenwood Gearhart Inc. increased its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Greenwood Gearhart Inc. now owns 201,839 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $39,225,000 after acquiring an additional 8,270 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.95% of the company’s stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock opened at $292.24 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $27.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $277.52 and its 200 day moving average is $240.59. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a one year low of $130.12 and a one year high of $299.76.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The transportation company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $3.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 18.75% and a net margin of 5.31%.J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays increased their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $261.00 price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $200.00 price target (up from $190.00) on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Argus set a $285.00 price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $286.30.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP David Keefauver sold 703 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.13, for a total value of $200,446.39. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $225,252.70. This represents a 47.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Bradley W. Hicks sold 7,644 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.91, for a total transaction of $2,002,040.04. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 23,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,281,125.62. This represents a 24.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 15,847 shares of company stock worth $4,162,861. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.