Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Given New $12.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) had its target price trimmed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $13.00 to $12.00 in a report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. StockNews.com upgraded Heartland Express from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, March 11th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an underweight rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Heartland Express presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $13.50.

Heartland Express Stock Performance

Heartland Express stock opened at $10.36 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $11.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a current ratio of 1.26. Heartland Express has a 52-week low of $10.00 and a 52-week high of $17.08.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported ($0.19) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.12) by ($0.07). Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 1.13% and a negative return on equity of 1.50%. The firm had revenue of $270.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $263.92 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.16 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Heartland Express will post -0.01 EPS for the current year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 26th were paid a $0.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 25th. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. Heartland Express’s payout ratio is -47.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Heartland Express

In other news, major shareholder Ann S. Gerdin Revocable Trust acquired 14,933 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $12.39 per share, for a total transaction of $185,019.87. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 159,865 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,980,727.35. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 39.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heartland Express

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in Heartland Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $244,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Heartland Express during the 3rd quarter valued at $258,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Heartland Express by 133.2% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 18,082 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 10,327 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Heartland Express in the fourth quarter worth $327,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in Heartland Express by 7.5% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 23,644 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $347,000 after buying an additional 1,654 shares during the period. 53.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services.