Ethic Inc. Sells 495 Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT)

Ethic Inc. lowered its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) by 8.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,576 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 495 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services were worth $952,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of JBHT. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 428.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,263,391 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $215,610,000 after purchasing an additional 1,024,295 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $146,618,000. Demars Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 16,964.6% in the fourth quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 610,059 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $104,113,000 after acquiring an additional 606,484 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 111.1% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 956,504 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $163,237,000 after acquiring an additional 503,324 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 155.7% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 220,840 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,689,000 after acquiring an additional 134,476 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.95% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Darren P. Field sold 1,200 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.67, for a total value of $194,004.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,822 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,881,282.74. This trade represents a 6.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Nicholas Hobbs acquired 1,529 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $130.75 per share, with a total value of $199,916.75. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer now directly owns 91,847 shares in the company, valued at $12,008,995.25. This represents a 1.69% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on JBHT shares. Citigroup dropped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $193.00 to $164.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Raymond James dropped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $190.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $188.00 to $166.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $148.00 price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $160.00 to $140.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.20.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:JBHT opened at $147.32 on Wednesday. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.79 and a 1-year high of $200.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $140.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $163.54. The company has a market capitalization of $14.61 billion, a PE ratio of 26.50, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.33.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.02. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 14.05% and a net margin of 4.72%. The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.19%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s payout ratio is presently 31.94%.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc provides surface transportation, delivery, and logistic services in the United States. It operates through five segments: Intermodal (JBI), Dedicated Contract Services (DCS), Integrated Capacity Solutions (ICS), Final Mile Services (FMS), and Truckload (JBT). The JBI segment offers intermodal freight solutions.