Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULH) Short Interest Update

Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULH) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 169,000 shares, a growth of 42.7% from the June 30th total of 118,400 shares. Currently, 2.5% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 55,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days.

Universal Logistics Stock Performance

Shares of ULH stock traded down $1.96 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $43.08. 42,073 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 45,490. The company has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.41 and a beta of 0.82. The company’s 50 day moving average is $42.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.61. Universal Logistics has a 1 year low of $20.85 and a 1 year high of $50.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 1.22.

Universal Logistics (NASDAQ:ULH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The transportation company reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $1.26. Universal Logistics had a return on equity of 23.55% and a net margin of 7.23%. The firm had revenue of $491.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.50 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Universal Logistics will post 5.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Universal Logistics Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 2nd will be paid a $0.105 dividend. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. Universal Logistics’s payout ratio is currently 9.17%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Universal Logistics

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Universal Logistics in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $957,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in Universal Logistics by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 65,244 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,828,000 after buying an additional 7,204 shares in the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its position in Universal Logistics by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 10,862 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $304,000 after buying an additional 834 shares in the last quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Universal Logistics during the fourth quarter worth $470,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Universal Logistics during the fourth quarter worth $110,000. 25.50% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on ULH shares. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $46.00 price objective (up from $36.00) on shares of Universal Logistics in a research report on Monday, April 29th. StockNews.com raised Universal Logistics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th.

Universal Logistics Company Profile

Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc provides transportation and logistics solutions in the United States, Mexico, Canada, and Colombia. The company offers truckload services, which include dry van, flatbed, heavy-haul, and refrigerated operations; domestic and international freight forwarding, and customs brokerage services.