Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Trading Down 3% - What's Next?

Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 3% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $11.17 and last traded at $11.13. Approximately 25,001 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 319,070 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.47.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on HTLD shares. UBS Group cut their target price on Heartland Express from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays raised their price target on Heartland Express from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $11.75.

Heartland Express Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market cap of $880.77 million, a P/E ratio of -38.69 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $11.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.92.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The transportation company reported ($0.12) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.11). Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 2.11% and a negative return on equity of 2.70%. The business had revenue of $259.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $268.35 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.14) EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Heartland Express, Inc. will post -0.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Heartland Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 8th. Investors of record on Friday, December 27th were given a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 27th. Heartland Express's dividend payout ratio is presently -27.59%.

Insider Activity at Heartland Express

In other news, major shareholder Ann S. Gerdin Revocable Trust bought 49,506 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $12.24 per share, with a total value of $605,953.44. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 898,584 shares in the company, valued at $10,998,668.16. This represents a 5.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael J. Gerdin bought 63,074 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $10.95 per share, for a total transaction of $690,660.30. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,259,792 shares in the company, valued at $13,794,722.40. The trade was a 5.27 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have bought 153,750 shares of company stock valued at $1,786,918. 39.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Heartland Express by 85.7% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,069 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 2,340 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $124,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $166,000. Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $202,000. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its position in shares of Heartland Express by 33.3% during the 2nd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 19,245 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 4,808 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.