Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Shares of Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $180.96, but opened at $173.02. Old Dominion Freight Line shares last traded at $176.3370, with a volume of 304,879 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on ODFL shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $263.00 price target on Old Dominion Freight Line and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $243.00 price objective (up from $237.00) on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Old Dominion Freight Line from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $235.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $227.00 target price (down from $250.00) on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Old Dominion Freight Line from $234.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Old Dominion Freight Line currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $227.65.

Old Dominion Freight Line Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $209.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $209.90. The company has a market cap of $36.53 billion, a PE ratio of 34.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.16.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.14. Old Dominion Freight Line had a return on equity of 24.87% and a net margin of 19.44%.The business had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.27 earnings per share. Old Dominion Freight Line’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. will post 5.78 EPS for the current year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 2nd. Old Dominion Freight Line’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.35%.

Insider Activity at Old Dominion Freight Line

In other news, SVP Cecil Overbey, Jr. sold 19,952 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.39, for a total transaction of $3,958,277.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 22,746 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,512,578.94. This represents a 46.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 8.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Old Dominion Freight Line

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ODFL. Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in Old Dominion Freight Line by 249.8% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 81,588 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $17,672,000 after purchasing an additional 58,264 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line during the 2nd quarter valued at $970,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,156 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 2,227 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $482,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 46.4% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 8,631 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,870,000 after buying an additional 2,736 shares during the period. 77.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc is a transportation and logistics company that specializes in less-than-truckload (LTL) freight services. The company transports shipments that do not require a full trailer, consolidating freight from multiple customers and providing regional, inter-regional and nationwide service.

Its service offerings include expedited transportation, truckload brokerage, container drayage, warehousing and supply chain consulting. Old Dominion operates a network of service centers and transportation facilities designed to support pickup and delivery, freight handling and distribution throughout the contiguous United States, with additional cross-border service to Canada and Mexico.

Founded in 1934 by Earl and Lillian Congdon, the company is headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina.