Marten Transport, Ltd (NASDAQ:MRTN) – Stock analysts at KeyCorp reduced their FY2020 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Marten Transport in a research report issued on Tuesday, June 18th, Zacks Investment Research reports. KeyCorp analyst T. Fowler now expects that the transportation company will earn $1.15 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $1.20.
Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Stephens assumed coverage on Marten Transport in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Zacks Investment Research upgraded Marten Transport from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 29th. BidaskClub upgraded Marten Transport from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $18.00 price target on Marten Transport and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, The company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.33.
MRTN traded up $0.11 during trading on Friday, reaching $18.15. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 66,793 shares, compared to its average volume of 187,822. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $18.16. The company has a market capitalization of $985.17 million, a P/E ratio of 18.15 and a beta of 1.51. Marten Transport has a 52-week low of $15.39 and a 52-week high of $24.55.
Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The transportation company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.01. Marten Transport had a return on equity of 10.23% and a net margin of 7.28%. The company had revenue of $199.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $196.60 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.19 earnings per share. Marten Transport’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis.
Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in Marten Transport by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 27,673 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $448,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares during the period. Texas Permanent School Fund boosted its position in Marten Transport by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund now owns 25,304 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $410,000 after buying an additional 886 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank boosted its position in Marten Transport by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 38,446 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $690,000 after buying an additional 977 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in Marten Transport by 33.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,767 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 1,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in Marten Transport by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 19,153 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $310,000 after buying an additional 1,733 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.65% of the company’s stock.
In other Marten Transport news, Director Thomas J. Winkel sold 6,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.41, for a total value of $127,562.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 28,241 shares in the company, valued at approximately $576,398.81. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 23.00% of the company’s stock.
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 13th. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. Marten Transport’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.00%.
About Marten Transport
Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment.