J.B. Hunt Transport Services Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:JBHT)

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading on Friday. Stock traders acquired 4,010 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 334% compared to the average volume of 924 call options.

Insider Activity

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, COO Nicholas Hobbs acquired 1,529 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $130.75 per share, for a total transaction of $199,916.75. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now directly owns 91,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,008,995.25. This trade represents a 1.69 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 value of $194,004.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,822 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,881,282.74. This trade represents a 6.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of J.B. Hunt Transport Services

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. National Pension Service acquired a new position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 102.2% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 281 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 68.7% in the 4th 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 raised its position 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 buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.95% of the company's stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Performance

Shares of JBHT stock traded down $3.25 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $129.73. 1,960,357 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 949,467. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.33, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $146.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $166.84. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a 52 week low of $122.79 and a 52 week high of $200.40.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.02. 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 $2.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.92 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that J.B. Hunt Transport Services will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JBHT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $150.00 target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $196.00 to $155.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $170.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Susquehanna set a $140.00 target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $207.00 to $202.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $162.20.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

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.