Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

LSTR has been the subject of a number of other reports. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of Landstar System in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Landstar System from $186.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Landstar System from $198.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Landstar System from $155.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Stephens raised shares of Landstar System to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Landstar System presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $196.00.

Landstar System Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ LSTR opened at $180.63 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.13 billion, a PE ratio of 46.80 and a beta of 0.90. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $194.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $182.18. Landstar System has a 12-month low of $119.32 and a 12-month high of $228.46.

Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The transportation company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. Landstar System had a return on equity of 20.84% and a net margin of 2.64%.The company’s revenue was up 18.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Landstar System will post 5.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Landstar System Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 18th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from Landstar System’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Landstar System’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.60%.

Insider Transactions at Landstar System

In other Landstar System news, Director Diana M. Murphy sold 11,246 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.28, for a total value of $2,488,514.88. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 18,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,171,791.84. This trade represents a 37.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO James P. Todd sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.17, for a total value of $261,804.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 15,122 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,299,166.74. This represents a 7.35% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Landstar System

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fenimore Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Landstar System by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc now owns 486,165 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $69,862,000 after buying an additional 145,035 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Landstar System by 13.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 250,112 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $40,095,000 after buying an additional 29,595 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Landstar System during the fourth quarter valued at $35,280,000. Manatuck Hill Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Landstar System in the 4th quarter valued at $862,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Landstar System in the 2nd quarter valued at $6,064,000. 97.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Landstar System Company Profile

Landstar System, Inc provides integrated transportation management solutions through a network of independent agents and third-party capacity providers. The company specializes in truckload brokerage, intermodal, air and ocean freight, expedited and heavy-haul services, along with value-added offerings such as cargo insurance, customs brokerage and supply chain management. Landstar’s proprietary technology platform enables real-time load matching, shipment tracking and data analytics to optimize fleet utilization and improve customer service.

Founded in 1968 and headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Landstar pioneered an asset-light brokerage model that has evolved into a global logistics operation.