Rhumbline Advisers Reduces Holdings in Werner Enterprises, Inc. $WERN

Rhumbline Advisers reduced its stake in Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN) by 9.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 179,891 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 19,215 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned about 0.30% of Werner Enterprises worth $4,735,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WERN. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 0.3% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 126,854 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,717,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Werner Enterprises by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,271 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $165,000 after buying an additional 403 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 64,228 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,758,000 after acquiring an additional 503 shares during the last quarter. Capital Fund Management S.A. increased its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 1.1% in the second quarter. Capital Fund Management S.A. now owns 57,285 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,567,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the period. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 1.1% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 57,011 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,560,000 after acquiring an additional 601 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.32% of the company’s stock.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WERN shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $34.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Werner Enterprises from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Werner Enterprises in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Robert W. Baird raised Werner Enterprises from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $34.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Werner Enterprises from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $33.14.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Eric J. Downing sold 1,428 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $49,980.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 57,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,007,740. The trade was a 2.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Werner Enterprises Price Performance

WERN opened at $33.18 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -138.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.35. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.02 and a 12-month high of $38.45.

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

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

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

Werner Enterprises Profile

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.