Trexquant Investment LP Lowers Holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT)

Trexquant Investment LP decreased its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) by 42.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,643 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 16,654 shares during the quarter. Trexquant Investment LP's holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services were worth $3,864,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. National Pension Service acquired a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 102.2% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 281 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 68.7% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 329 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 33.9% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 340 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.95% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James K. Thompson sold 4,400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.37, for a total transaction of $771,628.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,131,541.83. This represents a 15.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Darren P. Field sold 1,200 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,822 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,881,282.74. The trade was 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 company insiders.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:JBHT traded down $1.46 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $132.88. 1,976,773 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 938,134. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $154.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.45. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $127.05 and a twelve month high of $200.40. The stock has a market cap 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 (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.47 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on JBHT shares. Evercore ISI cut their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $207.00 to $202.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $190.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Benchmark lowered their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. They set a "hold" rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $177.70.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company 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.