David Paul Millis Sells 31,402 Shares of Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Stock

Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) Director David Paul Millis sold 31,402 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.67, for a total value of $492,069.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 28,387 shares in the company, valued at approximately $444,824.29. This represents a 52.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Heartland Express Stock Performance

NASDAQ:HTLD traded down $1.03 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $14.33. 646,823 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 535,169. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $13.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.30. The firm has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -25.59 and a beta of 1.31. Heartland Express, Inc. has a one year low of $6.99 and a one year high of $16.64.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The transportation company reported ($0.06) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $153.81 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $177.30 million. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 3.70% and a negative net margin of 5.69%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 19.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.18) earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Heartland Express, Inc. will post 0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 23rd. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Heartland Express’s payout ratio is currently -14.29%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heartland Express

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Heartland Express by 4.4% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 27,708 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $255,000 after acquiring an additional 1,170 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in Heartland Express in the 1st quarter worth $133,000. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in Heartland Express in the 1st quarter worth $907,000. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new position in shares of Heartland Express during the 2nd quarter valued at about $462,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of Heartland Express by 1.0% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 126,736 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,095,000 after purchasing an additional 1,262 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.45% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HTLD. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Heartland Express from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley set a $12.00 price target on Heartland Express in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen cut Heartland Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, May 24th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Heartland Express from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Heartland Express currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $12.20.

About Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc (NASDAQ: HTLD) is a publicly traded truckload carrier headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa. The company specializes in full truckload transportation, offering dry-van services that connect shippers with customers across the continental United States. Its primary focus is on over-the-road freight movements, serving industries such as manufacturing, retail, and consumer goods.

Founded in 1978 as Heartland Motor Freight, the company has grown from a regional carrier into one of the larger U.S.