Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold”

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on HTLD. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Heartland Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Heartland Express from $14.00 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 13th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Heartland Express currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $13.00.

Heartland Express Price Performance

NASDAQ HTLD opened at $12.23 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $13.32 and its 200 day moving average is $12.84. Heartland Express has a fifty-two week low of $6.99 and a fifty-two week high of $16.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.58. The company has a market capitalization of $945.75 million, a PE ratio of -43.68 and a beta of 1.33.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The transportation company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 0.92% and a negative net margin of 2.98%.The business had revenue of $152.38 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $185.08 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.14) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Heartland Express will post 0.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Heartland Express

In other Heartland Express news, Director David Millis sold 31,402 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.67, for a total transaction of $492,069.34. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 28,387 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $444,824.29. This trade represents a 52.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 41.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heartland Express

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of Heartland Express during the second quarter worth $34,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Heartland Express in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Heartland Express by 76.7% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,905 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,261 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Heartland Express by 185.5% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,673 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 3,036 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Heartland Express by 18.1% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,525 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 999 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 53.45% of the company’s stock.

About Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc (NASDAQ: HTLD) is a publicly traded truckload carrier headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa. The company specializes in full truckload transportation, offering dry-van services that connect shippers with customers across the continental United States. Its primary focus is on over-the-road freight movements, serving industries such as manufacturing, retail, and consumer goods.

Founded in 1978 as Heartland Motor Freight, the company has grown from a regional carrier into one of the larger U.S.