Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN) Short Interest Update

Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decline in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,280,000 shares, a decline of 20.0% from the January 31st total of 4,100,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 651,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.0 days. Currently, 5.6% of the company's stock are sold short.

Werner Enterprises Stock Down 0.2 %

WERN stock traded down $0.05 on Friday, reaching $32.23. 519,752 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 720,771. Werner Enterprises has a one year low of $30.90 and a one year high of $42.48. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $37.02. The company has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.71 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The transportation company reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.15). Werner Enterprises had a net margin of 1.13% and a return on equity of 2.27%. Research analysts anticipate that Werner Enterprises will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Remove Ads

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. Werner Enterprises's payout ratio is presently 101.82%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Werner Enterprises in the 3rd quarter worth $485,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises during the 3rd quarter worth about $630,000. Empower Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in Werner Enterprises by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 362,786 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $14,000,000 after buying an additional 16,637 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 31.1% in the 3rd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 84,085 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $3,245,000 after acquiring an additional 19,944 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP raised its stake in Werner Enterprises by 19.8% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 98,550 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $3,803,000 after purchasing an additional 16,280 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.32% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on WERN. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Werner Enterprises from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Werner Enterprises in a report on Friday. They set a "hold" rating and a $33.00 price target for the company. Finally, Susquehanna raised Werner Enterprises from a "negative" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $38.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Werner Enterprises has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $37.00.

About Werner Enterprises

Werner Enterprises, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in transporting truckload shipments of general commodities in interstate and intrastate commerce in the United States, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Truckload Transportation Services and Werner Logistics.