Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Stock Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) shares passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $8.39 and traded as high as $9.60. Heartland Express shares last traded at $9.38, with a volume of 658,864 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on HTLD shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Heartland Express in a report on Monday, December 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Heartland Express from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Heartland Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Heartland Express from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Heartland Express from $8.50 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Heartland Express presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $8.25.

Heartland Express Price Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $8.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $734.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.07 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The transportation company reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.11). The business had revenue of $172.43 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $209.68 million. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 4.37% and a negative net margin of 4.01%. Equities research analysts forecast that Heartland Express, Inc. will post 0.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heartland Express

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Heartland Express by 0.5% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,857,387 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $32,325,000 after buying an additional 17,962 shares during the period. Gate City Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Heartland Express by 167.6% in the 2nd quarter. Gate City Capital Management LLC now owns 1,611,581 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $13,924,000 after acquiring an additional 1,009,388 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 13.4% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,408,307 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,168,000 after purchasing an additional 166,717 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Heartland Express by 11.6% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,241,432 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $10,727,000 after purchasing an additional 128,702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Heartland Express by 72.7% during the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 1,153,238 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $9,664,000 after purchasing an additional 485,658 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 53.45% of the company’s stock.

Heartland Express Company Profile

Heartland Express, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services.