Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT)

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 66,014 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,480 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services worth $11,266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of JBHT. National Pension Service bought a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 102.2% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 281 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 68.7% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 329 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 33.9% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 340 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. 74.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $188.00 to $166.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Raymond James decreased their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $190.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Bank of America dropped their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $205.00 target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $177.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director James K. Thompson sold 4,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.37, for a total transaction of $771,628.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 23,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,131,541.83. The trade was a 15.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Darren P. Field sold 1,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.67, for a total transaction of $194,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 17,822 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,881,282.74. This trade represents a 6.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Performance

J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock traded down $1.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $132.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,976,773 shares, compared to its average volume of 938,134. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $154.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.03. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.05 and a 12-month high of $200.40. The company has a market capitalization of $13.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.90, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.27.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The transportation company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.62 by ($0.09). J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.72% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The company had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.47 earnings per share. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. This is a boost from J.B. Hunt Transport Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's payout ratio is currently 31.65%.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc provides surface transportation, delivery, and logistic services in the United States. It operates through five segments: Intermodal (JBI), Dedicated Contract Services (DCS), Integrated Capacity Solutions (ICS), Final Mile Services (FMS), and Truckload (JBT). The JBI segment offers intermodal freight solutions.