Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) Short Interest Update

Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 971,500 shares, a growth of 20.4% from the February 13th total of 807,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 416,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days. Approximately 1.7% of the company's stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Marten Transport from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th.

Marten Transport Price Performance

NASDAQ MRTN traded up $0.09 on Friday, hitting $13.75. The stock had a trading volume of 1,203,966 shares, compared to its average volume of 374,879. The business's fifty day moving average price is $14.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.09. Marten Transport has a 52-week low of $13.45 and a 52-week high of $19.26. The stock has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.44 and a beta of 0.84.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The transportation company reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.01. Marten Transport had a net margin of 2.79% and a return on equity of 3.52%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marten Transport will post 0.41 EPS for the current year.

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Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Marten Transport's payout ratio is currently 70.59%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marten Transport

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealthedge Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marten Transport during the fourth quarter worth $266,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marten Transport by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 96,634 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,508,000 after buying an additional 13,957 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marten Transport by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 41,769 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $652,000 after buying an additional 15,188 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in shares of Marten Transport by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 424,116 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $6,620,000 after buying an additional 37,100 shares during the period. Finally, Shay Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marten Transport during the fourth quarter worth $347,000. 69.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marten Transport Company Profile

Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United State, Mexico, and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment, as well as dry freight; and regional short-haul and medium-to-long-haul full-load transportation services.