Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Stock Gets Downgrade from Zacks Research

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Zacks reports.

Several other research firms have also commented on MRTN. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Marten Transport in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Stephens cut their price objective on Marten Transport from $15.00 to $12.50 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marten Transport has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $12.50.

Marten Transport Price Performance

NASDAQ:MRTN opened at $11.78 on Thursday. Marten Transport has a 1-year low of $9.35 and a 1-year high of $18.48. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $13.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $15.22. The firm has a market cap of $961.95 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.45 and a beta of 1.00.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The transportation company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.06 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $223.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $230.37 million. Marten Transport had a return on equity of 1.74% and a net margin of 1.55%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.03 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marten Transport will post 0.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marten Transport

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the 2nd quarter valued at $8,433,000. Heartland Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Marten Transport in the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,072,000. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 3.1% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 10,058,930 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $174,522,000 after purchasing an additional 298,912 shares during the period. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Marten Transport during the second quarter worth about $4,438,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Marten Transport in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,305,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.12% of the company’s stock.

Marten Transport News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Marten Transport this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter net income increased 30.7% year over year to $2.9 million, or $0.04 per diluted share. Operating income rose 11.9% to $3.1 million, while operating expenses improved slightly to 98.6% of revenue from 98.8% a year earlier. Marten Transport Announces Third Quarter Results
• Positive Sentiment: Freight trends showed some improvement: truckload revenue climbed 11.9% to $117.3 million, fuel-surcharge revenue rose to $39.0 million from $26.5 million, and dedicated and brokerage operations generated $67.2 million and $38.7 million, respectively. Marten Transport Q3 Net Income Rises 31% to $2.9 Million
• Neutral Sentiment: Marten Transport held $91.5 million in cash at September 30, providing financial flexibility, although nine-month net income declined to $9.6 million from $13.7 million and revenue fell to $650.3 million from $673.5 million. Marten Transport Q3 Net Income Rises 31% to $2.9 Million
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly EPS of $0.04 missed the $0.06 consensus estimate, while revenue of $223.2 million fell short of the $230.4 million forecast. The results indicate that costs continue to limit the benefit of recovering freight rates. Marten Transport Misses Q3 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Stephens lowered its price target from $15.00 to $12.50 and maintained an “equal weight” rating, signaling limited near-term upside. Zacks also added MRTN to its Rank #5 “Strong Sell” list. Stephens Stock Recommendations

Marten Transport Company Profile

Marten Transport, Inc is a transportation and logistics company headquartered in Mondovi, Wisconsin. Founded in 1946, the company began as a regional carrier and has developed into a provider of temperature-sensitive and dry freight transportation services.

The company’s operations include refrigerated and dry truck-based transportation, dedicated transportation, intermodal services, and brokerage. Marten Transport serves customers across a range of industries, including food and consumer products, using refrigerated trailers, dry vans, intermodal equipment, and related logistics capabilities.

Marten Transport primarily serves the contiguous United States and also provides transportation services involving Canada and Mexico.