ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCB) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCB) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $123.4167.

ARCB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded ArcBest from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday. Zacks Research upgraded ArcBest from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of ArcBest from $122.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of ArcBest from $102.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of ArcBest from $116.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th.

ArcBest Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ARCB opened at $122.71 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $106.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $90.89. ArcBest has a 1-year low of $59.43 and a 1-year high of $135.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.05. ArcBest had a return on equity of 6.15% and a net margin of 1.38%.The company had revenue of $998.79 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $999.07 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that ArcBest will post 5.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ArcBest Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be issued a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. ArcBest’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ArcBest

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 300.3% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 26,896 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,898,000 after purchasing an additional 20,177 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in ArcBest by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,017 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $989,000 after buying an additional 619 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in ArcBest by 215.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 153,138 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $10,808,000 after buying an additional 104,643 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in ArcBest by 278.2% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 45,591 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,218,000 after buying an additional 33,537 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in ArcBest by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 20,135 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,421,000 after acquiring an additional 655 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.27% of the company’s stock.

ArcBest Company Profile

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCB) is a transportation and logistics company that offers comprehensive freight and supply chain solutions across North America. Founded in 1923 as Arkansas Best Freight System, the company has evolved into a diversified service provider with both asset-based and asset-light operations. Its core businesses include less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping through ABF Freight, expedited full-truckload services via Panther Premium Logistics, and a range of logistics and supply chain management services under its ArcBest Integrated Logistics division.

The company’s asset-based operations also encompass FleetNet America, a provider of emergency roadside assistance and maintenance services for heavy-duty vehicles.