Virtu Financial LLC Purchases New Stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 6,092 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,184,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 114.1% during the third quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 13,310 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,786,000 after purchasing an additional 7,094 shares during the last quarter. Greenwood Gearhart Inc. increased its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2.7% in the third quarter. Greenwood Gearhart Inc. now owns 193,569 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $25,971,000 after buying an additional 5,150 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the second quarter valued at about $539,000. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 12.4% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 234,471 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $31,459,000 after buying an additional 25,816 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 45.8% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 56,809 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,712,000 after buying an additional 17,839 shares in the last quarter. 74.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

JBHT opened at $271.22 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $258.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $226.02. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $130.12 and a fifty-two week high of $293.54. The firm has a market cap of $25.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.30.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 17.30% and a net margin of 5.13%.J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.17 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.86%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Bradley W. Hicks sold 7,644 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.91, for a total transaction of $2,002,040.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 23,982 shares in the company, valued at $6,281,125.62. The trade was a 24.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brian Webb sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.01, for a total value of $426,015.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 15,881 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,510,362.81. The trade was a 8.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,119 shares of company stock worth $4,736,095. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $248.00 target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Monday, May 11th. Weiss Ratings downgraded J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Bank of America upped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $250.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $250.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $236.17.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.