Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) Receives “Equal Weight” Rating from Morgan Stanley

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL)‘s stock had its “equal weight” rating restated by investment analysts at Morgan Stanley in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $245.00 price objective on the transportation company’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $235.00. Morgan Stanley’s price objective points to a potential upside of 12.57% from the stock’s current price.

ODFL has been the subject of a number of other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Old Dominion Freight Line from $197.00 to $234.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Old Dominion Freight Line from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $235.00 price target (up from $209.00) on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Wolfe Research lifted their price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $219.00.

Old Dominion Freight Line Stock Performance

Shares of Old Dominion Freight Line stock opened at $217.65 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $218.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $197.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.53, a PEG ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.18. Old Dominion Freight Line has a 52 week low of $126.01 and a 52 week high of $252.03.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The transportation company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.09. Old Dominion Freight Line had a return on equity of 23.42% and a net margin of 18.46%.The company had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Old Dominion Freight Line will post 5.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Old Dominion Freight Line news, Director Greg C. Gantt sold 22,107 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.52, for a total value of $4,233,932.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 88,551 shares in the company, valued at $16,959,287.52. This represents a 19.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 10.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Old Dominion Freight Line

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ODFL. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Old Dominion Freight Line by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,559 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 134.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,213 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,690,000 after buying an additional 5,866 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line during the second quarter worth $7,478,000. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line during the second quarter worth $2,891,000. Finally, AXA S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 1.2% during the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 20,253 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,287,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. 77.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line is a U.S.-based less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation company that provides regional, inter-regional and national freight services. Founded in 1934 and headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, the company has grown from a regional carrier into a national freight network, operating a broad system of service centers and terminals to move shipments for shippers of varying sizes and industries.

The company’s core business is LTL trucking, offering scheduled pickup and delivery for palletized freight that does not require a full truckload.