J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) saw a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 2,974,595 shares, an increase of 19.0% from the January 29th total of 2,500,314 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,464,482 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Currently, 3.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Currently, 3.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,464,482 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Trading Down 3.3%

Shares of NASDAQ JBHT traded down $7.74 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $227.18. The stock had a trading volume of 236,652 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,057,294. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $213.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $178.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.83. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a twelve month low of $122.79 and a twelve month high of $236.00. The firm has a market cap of $21.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.23.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The transportation company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.99% and a return on equity of 16.33%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.53 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that J.B. Hunt Transport Services will post 6.37 EPS for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th were paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is a positive change from J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.32%.

Insider Activity at J.B. Hunt Transport Services

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, CFO Albert Brad Delco sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.25, for a total value of $227,250.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 6,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,586,886.75. This trade represents a 12.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO John Kuhlow sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.68, for a total transaction of $225,680.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 17,931 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,046,668.08. The trade was a 5.28% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 28,329 shares of company stock worth $6,107,619 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On J.B. Hunt Transport Services

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 633.2% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,657 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $322,000 after buying an additional 1,431 shares during the period. Wick Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 4th quarter valued at $315,000. MidFirst Bank bought a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 4th quarter valued at $379,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 16.5% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 7,253 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029 shares during the period. Finally, Kera Capital Partners Inc. grew its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 38.3% in the fourth quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 5,087 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,031,000 after purchasing an additional 1,409 shares during the period. 74.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on JBHT shares. Vertical Research lowered J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $170.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $227.00 price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $150.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Evercore set a $222.00 price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Friday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $203.00.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.