Parnassus Investments LLC Acquires 37,033 Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT)

Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 790,038 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 37,033 shares during the quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC owned approximately 0.78% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services worth $134,828,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of JBHT. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 1.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 98,725 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $17,013,000 after purchasing an additional 1,737 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP purchased a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $380,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,398,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 190,689 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $32,861,000 after buying an additional 3,910 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank raised its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 21.8% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 341 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. 74.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on JBHT. Evercore ISI reduced 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 report on Friday, January 17th. Susquehanna raised shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a "neutral" rating to a "positive" rating and set a $200.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $180.00 to $171.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $167.00 price objective on the stock. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $186.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Darren P. Field sold 1,200 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.67, for a total value of $194,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 17,822 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,881,282.74. This represents a 6.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director James K. Thompson sold 4,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.37, for a total value of $771,628.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 23,559 shares in the company, valued at $4,131,541.83. The trade was a 15.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Performance

JBHT stock traded down $2.33 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $147.13. 1,466,572 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 870,894. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $145.86 and a 52-week high of $200.40. The stock has a market cap of $14.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.46, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.16. The stock's 50-day moving average is $167.72 and its 200 day moving average is $173.53.

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

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The business 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 is an increase from J.B. Hunt Transport Services's previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's payout ratio is 31.65%.

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.