International Assets Investment Management LLC Purchases New Holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT)

International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 252 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in JBHT. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 7,720.2% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 983,703 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $196,485,000 after purchasing an additional 971,124 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the fourth quarter worth $185,299,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2,722.2% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 545,042 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $108,600,000 after buying an additional 525,729 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd raised its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 887,836 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $177,336,000 after buying an additional 120,202 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,744,668 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,946,400,000 after buying an additional 80,123 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.95% of the company’s stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Performance

Shares of JBHT stock opened at $169.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.21. The firm has a market cap of $17.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.14. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $166.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $174.18. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a one year low of $153.12 and a one year high of $219.51.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The transportation company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by ($0.19). J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 14.77% and a net margin of 4.90%. The firm had revenue of $2.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 5.7 EPS for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Friday, June 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $185.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $188.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $173.00 to $151.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Benchmark dropped their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $200.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $177.00 to $173.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Darren P. Field sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.03, for a total value of $525,090.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,476,674.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Persio V. Lisboa acquired 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 19th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $163.47 per share, with a total value of $98,082.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $587,511.18. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Darren P. Field sold 3,000 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.03, for a total value of $525,090.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,476,674.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.