First Eagle Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Heartland Express, Inc. $HTLD

First Eagle Investment Management LLC cut its position in shares of Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) by 69.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 221,581 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 498,287 shares during the quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Heartland Express were worth $1,914,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP grew its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 3,345.5% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 12,576 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 12,211 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Heartland Express in the first quarter valued at approximately $117,000. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its position in Heartland Express by 243.6% in the first quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 12,987 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $120,000 after acquiring an additional 9,207 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its stake in Heartland Express by 44.4% during the first quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 13,858 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $128,000 after acquiring an additional 4,263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Savant Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Heartland Express during the second quarter worth $128,000. 53.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Heartland Express Price Performance

HTLD stock opened at $7.63 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $8.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $590.62 million, a P/E ratio of -16.59 and a beta of 1.07. Heartland Express, Inc. has a 1 year low of $7.11 and a 1 year high of $12.85.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The transportation company reported ($0.11) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $172.43 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $209.68 million. Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 3.85% and a negative return on equity of 4.42%. Analysts anticipate that Heartland Express, Inc. will post 0.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on HTLD shares. Zacks Research upgraded Heartland Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Heartland Express from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Heartland Express from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Heartland Express from $8.50 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Heartland Express from $9.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Heartland Express has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $8.75.

Insider Activity at Heartland Express

In other news, CEO Michael J. Gerdin acquired 24,798 shares of Heartland Express stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $8.19 per share, for a total transaction of $203,095.62. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 1,491,868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,218,398.92. This trade represents a 1.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders have purchased 30,000 shares of company stock valued at $245,752. Corporate insiders own 40.70% of the company’s stock.

Heartland Express Profile

Heartland Express, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services.