Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Sells 17,000 Shares of Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN)

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lowered its position in Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) by 69.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,389 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 17,000 shares during the quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Marten Transport were worth $155,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MRTN. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Marten Transport in the first quarter valued at about $47,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in Marten Transport in the third quarter valued at about $54,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Marten Transport by 1,997.7% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,706 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 2,577 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in Marten Transport by 108.6% in the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,790 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,973 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Middle East FZE purchased a new position in Marten Transport in the fourth quarter valued at about $71,000. Institutional investors own 69.12% of the company’s stock.

Marten Transport Stock Performance

Shares of MRTN stock opened at $16.56 on Friday. Marten Transport, Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $15.33 and a fifty-two week high of $23.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.03 and a beta of 0.79. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $18.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.99.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The transportation company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12. Marten Transport had a return on equity of 9.48% and a net margin of 6.22%. The business had revenue of $249.67 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $262.77 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 16.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Marten Transport’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on MRTN. Stephens cut their target price on Marten Transport from $23.00 to $21.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Vertical Research upgraded Marten Transport from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th.

Marten Transport Profile

Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United State, Mexico, and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment, as well as dry freight; and regional short-haul and medium-to-long-haul full-load transportation services.