Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. $ODFL Shares Purchased by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) by 122.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,822,304 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,004,609 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.87% of Old Dominion Freight Line worth $285,737,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in Old Dominion Freight Line by 600.0% in the 4th quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 210 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in Old Dominion Freight Line in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in Old Dominion Freight Line in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Old Dominion Freight Line in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in Old Dominion Freight Line in the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. 77.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Old Dominion Freight Line

In other Old Dominion Freight Line news, Director Greg C. Gantt sold 22,107 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.52, for a total transaction of $4,233,932.64. Following the sale, the director directly owned 88,551 shares in the company, valued at $16,959,287.52. This represents a 19.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 10.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ODFL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $197.00 to $234.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $240.00 price objective (up from $232.00) on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays set a $210.00 price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $216.00 price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $210.71.

Old Dominion Freight Line Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ODFL opened at $248.73 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.73 billion, a PE ratio of 52.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $212.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.56. Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. has a 1 year low of $126.01 and a 1 year high of $252.03.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The transportation company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. Old Dominion Freight Line had a net margin of 18.46% and a return on equity of 23.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.19 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. will post 5.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Old Dominion Freight Line’s dividend payout ratio is 24.27%.

Old Dominion Freight Line Company Profile

Old Dominion Freight Line is a U.S.-based less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation company that provides regional, inter-regional and national freight services. Founded in 1934 and headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, the company has grown from a regional carrier into a national freight network, operating a broad system of service centers and terminals to move shipments for shippers of varying sizes and industries.

The company’s core business is LTL trucking, offering scheduled pickup and delivery for palletized freight that does not require a full truckload.