Evercore ISI Cuts Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Price Target to $23.00

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) had its price objective reduced by Evercore ISI from $25.00 to $23.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an underperform rating on the transportation company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Werner Enterprises in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Werner Enterprises from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $30.00.

Werner Enterprises Stock Performance

Shares of Werner Enterprises stock opened at $26.49 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.80, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.06. Werner Enterprises has a 12 month low of $23.02 and a 12 month high of $42.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $753.15 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $736.09 million. Werner Enterprises had a net margin of 1.77% and a return on equity of 0.92%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.17 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Werner Enterprises will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 6th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 6th. Werner Enterprises’s payout ratio is presently 65.12%.

Werner Enterprises announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, August 11th that authorizes the company to buyback 5,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the transportation company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Werner Enterprises

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 163.5% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 959 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 595 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 57.8% during the 2nd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,018 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 373 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 69.7% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,176 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 306.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,294 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. 89.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Werner Enterprises

Werner Enterprises, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in transporting truckload shipments of general commodities in interstate and intrastate commerce in the United States, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Truckload Transportation Services and Werner Logistics.