Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC Cuts Position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT)

Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC lowered its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT - Free Report) by 29.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 188,538 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 78,167 shares during the quarter. J.B. Hunt Transport Services makes up 2.6% of Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC owned about 0.19% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services worth $32,491,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 18.3% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 388 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust increased its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,599 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 1,013 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $162,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 1,725 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 47.2% during the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 237 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.95% of the company's stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ JBHT traded up $4.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $192.13. The stock had a trading volume of 1,030,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,078,438. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $173.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $167.36. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $153.12 and a 1 year high of $219.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market cap of $19.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.14.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.04 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 13.92%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.80 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 5.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. J.B. Hunt Transport Services's payout ratio is 31.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on JBHT. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $195.00 price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $201.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $188.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $151.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $187.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, EVP Darren P. Field sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.03, for a total transaction of $525,090.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,476,674.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Spencer Frazier sold 2,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.21, for a total value of $427,262.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $786,550.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Darren P. Field sold 3,000 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.03, for a total value of $525,090.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,150 shares in the company, valued at $2,476,674.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,314 shares of company stock worth $1,534,052. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.