Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Releases Earnings Results

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The transportation company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, Zacks reports. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 3.70% and a negative net margin of 5.69%.During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.14) EPS. The company’s revenue was down 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Heartland Express Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HTLD traded down $0.43 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $12.56. The stock had a trading volume of 385,850 shares, compared to its average volume of 558,212. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $14.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.52. Heartland Express has a fifty-two week low of $6.99 and a fifty-two week high of $16.64. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market capitalization of $973.27 million, a P/E ratio of -22.44 and a beta of 1.31.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were issued a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 23rd. Heartland Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -14.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Heartland Express news, Director David Paul Millis sold 31,402 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.67, for a total transaction of $492,069.34. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 28,387 shares in the company, valued at $444,824.29. This represents a 52.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 41.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Heartland Express

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in Heartland Express by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 12,252 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $111,000 after buying an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Heartland Express by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 27,708 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $255,000 after acquiring an additional 1,170 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Heartland Express by 76.7% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,905 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,261 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Heartland Express by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 126,736 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,095,000 after acquiring an additional 1,262 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC grew its position in Heartland Express by 11.7% during the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 14,504 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $125,000 after acquiring an additional 1,517 shares during the last quarter. 53.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Heartland Express in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Zacks Research raised Heartland Express from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Heartland Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.80.

Heartland Express Company 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.