Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Stock Price Down 5% – Here’s Why

Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) traded down 5% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $11.90 and last traded at $11.90. Approximately 115,806 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 585,416 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.52.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Heartland Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Heartland Express from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Zacks Research cut Heartland Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Heartland Express in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $13.00.

Heartland Express Stock Up 0.3%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.89. The firm has a market cap of $921.77 million, a PE ratio of -42.57 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $152.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $185.08 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.14) EPS. Heartland Express’s revenue was down 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Heartland Express, Inc. will post 0.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.02 per share. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 25th. Heartland Express’s payout ratio is currently -28.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Heartland Express during the 2nd quarter valued at about $289,000. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new stake in Heartland Express in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $165,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in Heartland Express in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $976,000. Susquehanna International Group LLP raised its stake in Heartland Express by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP now owns 27,476 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $418,000 after acquiring an additional 3,165 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in Heartland Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,425,000. Institutional investors own 53.45% of the company’s stock.

About Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc is a transportation and logistics company that provides asset-based truckload services in North America. The company primarily operates a fleet of dry van tractors and trailers, transporting general freight that does not require temperature control.

Its services include irregular-route and regional truckload transportation, dedicated freight, expedited shipping, and logistics support. Heartland Express serves customers across the United States and also provides cross-border transportation involving Canada and Mexico.

Founded in 1978, the company is headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa.