PDT Partners LLC Purchases Shares of 47,063 Marten Transport, Ltd. $MRTN

PDT Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 47,063 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $817,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 2,083.8% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,555 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 2,438 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in Marten Transport in the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Marten Transport by 3,553.8% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,873 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 3,767 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Marten Transport in the first quarter worth $68,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in Marten Transport by 378.7% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,610 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 4,438 shares during the period. 69.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marten Transport Stock Performance

Shares of Marten Transport stock opened at $14.46 on Friday. Marten Transport, Ltd. has a 52-week low of $9.35 and a 52-week high of $18.48. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $16.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.06 and a beta of 0.95.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $223.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.10 million. Marten Transport had a net margin of 1.47% and a return on equity of 1.65%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.09 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th will be given a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Marten Transport’s payout ratio is presently 141.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on MRTN shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Marten Transport in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Stephens lowered their target price on Marten Transport from $18.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $16.00.

About Marten Transport

Marten Transport, Inc is a North American transportation services provider offering temperature-controlled and dry van truckload services. Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Mondovi, Wisconsin, the company specializes in full truckload, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal and port drayage solutions. Its core focus on refrigerated and produce freight has made it a key partner for food manufacturers, retailers and other shippers requiring strict temperature management.

The company maintains a modern fleet of tractors and trailers equipped with advanced telematics, electronic logging devices and continuous temperature monitoring.