Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) Shares Down 4.1% After Earnings Miss

Shares of Landstar System, Inc. (NASDAQ:LSTR) traded down 4.1% on Thursday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as low as $164.99 and last traded at $165.88. 60,739 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 296,100 shares. The stock had previously closed at $172.92.

The transportation company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.04). Landstar System had a return on equity of 19.37% and a net margin of 4.07%.

Landstar System Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. Landstar System’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LSTR. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Landstar System in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Landstar System from $184.00 to $177.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Landstar System from $176.00 to $174.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Landstar System from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Landstar System from $164.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $171.27.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO James P. Todd sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.32, for a total transaction of $184,320.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 14,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,595,778.56. This trade represents a 6.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Landstar System

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LSTR. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Landstar System in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new position in Landstar System in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in Landstar System by 431.3% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 441 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Landstar System by 14.1% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 568 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Landstar System in the second quarter valued at approximately $131,000. 97.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Landstar System Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.82 billion, a PE ratio of 29.83 and a beta of 0.83. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $177.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $182.02.

About Landstar System

Landstar System, Inc provides integrated transportation management solutions in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and internationally. It operates through two segments: Transportation Logistics and Insurance. The Transportation Logistics segment offers a range of transportation services, including truckload and less-than-truckload transportation, rail intermodal, air cargo, ocean cargo, expedited ground and air delivery of time-critical freight, heavy-haul/specialized, U.S.-Canada and U.S.-Mexico cross-border, intra-Mexico, intra-Canada, project cargo, and customs brokerage, as well as offers transportation services to other transportation companies, such as third party logistics and less-than-truckload services.