J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) Now Covered by Analysts at Citizens Jmp

Investment analysts at Citizens Jmp began coverage on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday. The brokerage set a “market perform” rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $225.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Citigroup initiated coverage on J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $192.00 to $329.00 in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $265.22.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Down 0.8%

NASDAQ JBHT opened at $280.87 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $271.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $236.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a fifty-two week low of $130.12 and a fifty-two week high of $294.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.49 billion, a PE ratio of 43.48, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.29.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 17.30% and a net margin of 5.13%.The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.17 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that J.B. Hunt Transport Services will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Bradley W. Hicks sold 7,644 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider directly owned 23,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,281,125.62. This trade represents a 24.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Darren P. Field sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.49, for a total value of $1,017,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,213,045.04. This represents a 31.51% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 18,119 shares of company stock valued at $4,736,095. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On J.B. Hunt Transport Services

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 411.5% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,799,843 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $258,457,000 after purchasing an additional 1,447,993 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 4th quarter worth about $200,587,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 75,567.4% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,006,377 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $195,580,000 after buying an additional 1,005,047 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 338.0% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 823,089 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $110,434,000 after buying an additional 635,172 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 272.8% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 747,377 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $145,245,000 after buying an additional 546,880 shares during the period. 74.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

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.