Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Rating Increased to Neutral at Citigroup

Citigroup upgraded shares of Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Free Report) from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $29.00 price target on the transportation company's stock, down from their previous price target of $32.00.

WERN has been the topic of several other research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Werner Enterprises from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $34.00 to $27.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Susquehanna reduced their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $39.00 to $32.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $38.00 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Werner Enterprises in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a "hold" rating and a $33.00 price objective for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $35.07.

Werner Enterprises Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WERN traded down $0.04 on Tuesday, hitting $28.48. 843,759 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 792,897. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.78 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Werner Enterprises has a 1-year low of $26.50 and a 1-year high of $42.48. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $31.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.49.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The transportation company reported $0.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.15). Werner Enterprises had a return on equity of 2.27% and a net margin of 1.13%. Sell-side analysts predict that Werner Enterprises will post 1.27 EPS for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. Werner Enterprises's payout ratio is 101.82%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Werner Enterprises

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Werner Enterprises by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,730,457 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $241,758,000 after acquiring an additional 32,228 shares during the period. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. raised its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 2,121,696 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $76,211,000 after purchasing an additional 19,370 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,987,187 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $71,380,000 after purchasing an additional 234,811 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Werner Enterprises by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,660,846 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $59,010,000 after buying an additional 143,953 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in Werner Enterprises in the 4th quarter worth about $35,257,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.32% of the company's stock.

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.