Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Stock Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $8.60 and traded as high as $10.48. Heartland Express shares last traded at $10.33, with a volume of 406,744 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $9.00 price objective on shares of Heartland Express in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Heartland Express from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Robert W. Baird set a $12.00 price target on shares of Heartland Express and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Zacks Research raised Heartland Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Heartland Express from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $9.75.

Heartland Express Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $9.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.60. The company has a market capitalization of $800.06 million, a PE ratio of -22.96 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The transportation company reported ($0.11) EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $172.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $209.68 million. Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 4.01% and a negative return on equity of 4.37%. As a group, research analysts expect that Heartland Express, Inc. will post 0.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 26th were given a dividend of $0.02 per share. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 26th. Heartland Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -17.78%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Heartland Express

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HTLD. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Heartland Express by 0.5% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,857,387 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $32,325,000 after purchasing an additional 17,962 shares in the last quarter. Gate City Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Heartland Express by 167.6% in the 2nd quarter. Gate City Capital Management LLC now owns 1,611,581 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $13,924,000 after buying an additional 1,009,388 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Heartland Express by 13.4% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,408,307 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,168,000 after buying an additional 166,717 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Heartland Express by 11.6% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,241,432 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $10,727,000 after acquiring an additional 128,702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Heartland Express by 72.7% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 1,153,238 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $9,664,000 after acquiring an additional 485,658 shares during the last quarter. 53.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Heartland Express Company Profile

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.