ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Shares of ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCB) reached a new 52-week high on Saturday . The company traded as high as $155.68 and last traded at $155.09, with a volume of 491651 shares. The stock had previously closed at $146.08.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ARCB. Weiss Ratings downgraded ArcBest from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of ArcBest in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Zacks Research raised ArcBest from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on ArcBest from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on ArcBest from $122.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ArcBest currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $131.42.

ArcBest Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 63.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $118.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.61.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $998.79 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $999.07 million. ArcBest had a return on equity of 6.15% and a net margin of 1.38%.ArcBest’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that ArcBest Corporation will post 5.29 earnings per share for the current year.

ArcBest Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. ArcBest’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ArcBest

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in shares of ArcBest in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 26.9% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 675 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 126.6% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,015 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 567 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 507.6% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,118 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 934 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in shares of ArcBest in the second quarter valued at approximately $85,000. 99.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ArcBest Company Profile

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCB) is a transportation and logistics company that offers comprehensive freight and supply chain solutions across North America. Founded in 1923 as Arkansas Best Freight System, the company has evolved into a diversified service provider with both asset-based and asset-light operations. Its core businesses include less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping through ABF Freight, expedited full-truckload services via Panther Premium Logistics, and a range of logistics and supply chain management services under its ArcBest Integrated Logistics division.

The company’s asset-based operations also encompass FleetNet America, a provider of emergency roadside assistance and maintenance services for heavy-duty vehicles.