Short Interest in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) Decreases By 31.8%

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,101,776 shares, a decrease of 31.8% from the June 30th total of 3,083,665 shares. Currently, 2.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 941,183 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.2 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on JBHT shares. Citizens Jmp began coverage on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Barclays upped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $310.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $280.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $286.30.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, insider Bradley W. Hicks sold 7,644 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.91, for a total value of $2,002,040.04. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 23,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,281,125.62. This trade represents a 24.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Spencer Frazier sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.20, for a total value of $516,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 4,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,188,752.80. This represents a 30.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 15,847 shares of company stock valued at $4,162,861. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On J.B. Hunt Transport Services

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 74.3% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,643 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,314,000 after buying an additional 6,668 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 3.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 433,661 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $64,160,000 after acquiring an additional 13,729 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 27.8% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 1,770 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 385 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the second quarter valued at $539,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 21.0% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 583 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. 74.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ JBHT opened at $271.75 on Friday. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a twelve month low of $130.12 and a twelve month high of $299.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $280.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $244.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.52 billion, a PE ratio of 38.49, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.29.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The transportation company reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.50 billion for 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 was up 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.31 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services will post 7.75 earnings per share for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.50%.

More J.B. Hunt Transport Services News

Here are the key news stories impacting J.B. Hunt Transport Services this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its EPS forecasts across multiple periods, including FY2026 to $7.65 from $7.21, FY2027 to $9.68 from $8.89, and FY2028 to $10.40 from $9.31. The firm also increased estimates for several upcoming quarters, signaling expectations for stronger profitability. J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock information
• Positive Sentiment: Notable quarterly revisions included Q3 2026 EPS rising to $2.05 from $1.97, Q4 2026 to $2.19 from $2.07, Q2 2027 to $2.05 from $1.79, Q3 2027 to $3.16 from $2.93, and Q2 2028 to $2.49 from $2.14. These upgrades support the bullish case for JBHT’s longer-term earnings growth.
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research maintained a “Strong-Buy” rating, reinforcing the favorable analyst view. The estimate increases follow J.B. Hunt’s latest quarterly report, when the company exceeded both revenue and EPS expectations and posted year-over-year revenue growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: Although the estimates were raised, Zacks’ FY2026 forecast of $7.65 EPS remains slightly below the broader consensus estimate of $7.75, suggesting that near-term upside expectations are positive but not uniformly above market forecasts.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

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.