Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $16.44 and last traded at $16.40, with a volume of 1677016 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.13.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on MRTN. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Marten Transport to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Marten Transport from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Marten Transport from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st. Zacks Research raised shares of Marten Transport from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Stephens cut shares of Marten Transport from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Marten Transport Stock Up 1.7%

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a PE ratio of 86.32 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $13.95 and its 200-day moving average is $12.60.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by ($0.01). Marten Transport had a net margin of 1.68% and a return on equity of 1.89%. The company had revenue of $203.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $207.20 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.05 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.22 EPS for the current year.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be issued a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Marten Transport’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 126.32%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRTN. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in Marten Transport by 12.0% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 17,028 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 1,826 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Marten Transport by 18.7% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 61,335 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $842,000 after buying an additional 9,654 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Marten Transport by 4.4% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 34,496 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $473,000 after buying an additional 1,447 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new position in Marten Transport in the first quarter valued at about $158,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Marten Transport in the second quarter valued at about $96,000. 69.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marten Transport Company Profile

Marten Transport, Inc is a North American transportation services provider offering temperature-controlled and dry van truckload services. Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Mondovi, Wisconsin, the company specializes in full truckload, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal and port drayage solutions. Its core focus on refrigerated and produce freight has made it a key partner for food manufacturers, retailers and other shippers requiring strict temperature management.

The company maintains a modern fleet of tractors and trailers equipped with advanced telematics, electronic logging devices and continuous temperature monitoring.