Eric Downing Sells 1,428 Shares of Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Stock

Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN) COO Eric Downing sold 1,428 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total transaction of $49,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 57,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,007,740. The trade was a 2.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Werner Enterprises Stock Performance

WERN opened at $33.18 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -138.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.08. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $33.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.35. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a 1 year low of $23.02 and a 1 year high of $38.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.90.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The transportation company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.04). Werner Enterprises had a positive return on equity of 0.04% and a negative net margin of 0.48%.The firm had revenue of $737.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $767.51 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.08 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 13th. Werner Enterprises’s payout ratio is currently -233.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WERN. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in Werner Enterprises by 57.8% in the second quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,018 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 289.5% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,293 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 961 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 42.0% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,542 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 752 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 41.3% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.32% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WERN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on Werner Enterprises from $25.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Werner Enterprises from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Werner Enterprises from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $34.00 price target on shares of Werner Enterprises in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Evercore increased their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $20.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $33.14.

Trending Headlines about Werner Enterprises

Here are the key news stories impacting Werner Enterprises this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street Zen upgraded Werner to a “Hold,” a modest improvement in analyst tone that could support the shares if other analysts follow. Wall Street Zen Upgrades Werner Enterprises to Hold
• Neutral Sentiment: Media outlets (TipRanks/InsiderTrades) flagged the insider transactions, increasing visibility and prompting short-term trading activity; coverage itself doesn’t change fundamentals. Top Werner Enterprises Executive Makes Attention-Grabbing Stock Move
• Negative Sentiment: COO Eric Downing sold two small blocks (1,428 shares on Feb. 19 at ~$35 and 1,418 shares on Feb. 20 at ~$34.78), reducing his stake by ~2.4%; filings show the sales totaled roughly $99k and left him with ~56k shares. The insider selling, coming after a recent earnings miss and amid mixed analyst coverage, likely triggered near-term selling pressure. Eric Downing Sells 1,418 Shares of Werner Enterprises Stock

About Werner Enterprises

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.