Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $45.67 and last traded at $45.5430, with a volume of 51283 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $43.61.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on WERN. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Werner Enterprises from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $37.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Werner Enterprises from $33.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.85.

Werner Enterprises Trading Up 4.6%

The firm has a market cap of $2.74 billion, a P/E ratio of -305.46, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $41.35 and a 200 day moving average of $35.57.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.05. Werner Enterprises had a positive return on equity of 0.66% and a negative net margin of 0.28%.The firm had revenue of $730.14 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $812.50 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.12) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.02 EPS for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, July 6th will be given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 6th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Werner Enterprises’s payout ratio is presently -373.33%.

Institutional Trading of Werner Enterprises

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WERN. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 605.3% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,510,354 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $75,336,000 after acquiring an additional 2,154,428 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Werner Enterprises by 1,361.0% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,921,152 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $56,501,000 after purchasing an additional 1,789,653 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Werner Enterprises by 539.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,670,737 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $50,139,000 after purchasing an additional 1,409,556 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new stake in Werner Enterprises in the fourth quarter worth $34,201,000. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Werner Enterprises by 572.4% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,297,054 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $38,925,000 after purchasing an additional 1,104,160 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.32% of the company’s stock.

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc, founded in 1956 by Clarence L. “Chris” Werner, is a leading transportation and logistics provider based in Omaha, Nebraska. The company began as a one‐truck operation and has since grown into one of North America’s largest carriers, offering an array of services to support diverse supply chains.

Werner’s core business activities include full truckload dry van services, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal transport and brokerage solutions. The company also provides value-added services such as warehousing, freight management and fleet maintenance through its network of terminals and service centers.