Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Stock Gets Price Target Trim from Stifel Nicolaus

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) had its price target cut by Stifel Nicolaus from $40.00 to $36.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a hold rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Robert W. Baird cut shares of Werner Enterprises from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $43.00 to $32.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Werner Enterprises in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Evercore upgraded shares of Werner Enterprises from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $43.00 to $37.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $40.00 to $32.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.14.

Werner Enterprises Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ WERN opened at $27.71 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Werner Enterprises has a 12 month low of $23.06 and a 12 month high of $47.49. The company has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -89.38 and a beta of 1.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $34.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $36.04.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The transportation company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16. The firm had revenue of $825.28 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $956.55 million. Werner Enterprises had a positive return on equity of 2.03% and a negative net margin of 0.56%. Werner Enterprises’s revenue was up 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.03) EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Werner Enterprises will post 0.63 EPS for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Investors of record on Monday, October 5th were paid a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 5th. Werner Enterprises’s dividend payout ratio is currently -73.68%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Werner Enterprises

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WERN. BlackRock Inc. grew its stake in Werner Enterprises by 17.7% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 10,405,606 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $453,788,000 after acquiring an additional 1,563,170 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 3.1% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,637,086 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $115,003,000 after purchasing an additional 79,075 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 4.1% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,794,752 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $111,601,000 after purchasing an additional 148,826 shares in the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 11.1% during the first quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 3,055,017 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $89,848,000 after purchasing an additional 304,983 shares during the period. Finally, Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 146.9% during the second quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,366,167 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $59,579,000 after purchasing an additional 812,800 shares during the period. 89.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Werner Enterprises News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Werner Enterprises this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management said accelerated trucking-capacity reductions could support a multi-year freight upcycle. Werner also indicated that margins may rebound as cost pressures ease, offering a potential catalyst if industry pricing improves. Werner’s Leathers expects accelerated capacity reductions Werner Enterprises Signals Margin Rebound Amid Cost Headwinds
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan reportedly expects upside for Werner’s shares, providing a more constructive view amid the generally cautious analyst reaction. JPMorgan analyst expects Werner stock to rise
• Neutral Sentiment: Chairman and CEO Derek Leathers was elected chairman of the American Trucking Associations for a one-year term. The appointment raises Werner’s industry profile but is not expected to have an immediate financial effect. Derek Leathers elected ATA chairman
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter earnings were mixed: adjusted EPS of $0.16 matched expectations, but revenue of approximately $825.3 million fell well short of the roughly $956.6 million consensus estimate. The revenue miss, combined with weak profitability, is the primary reason investors remain cautious. How Should Investors Approach Werner Stock Post Q3 Earnings?
• Negative Sentiment: Several firms lowered their price targets, including Stifel, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Morgan Stanley and Barclays. Barclays cut its target to $32 and maintained an equal-weight rating, while Citigroup set a $32 neutral target. Zacks Research also downgraded WERN from hold to strong sell, intensifying selling pressure. Stifel lowers Werner expectations Citigroup cuts Werner target Wells Fargo lowers Werner expectations Morgan Stanley lowers Werner expectations Zacks downgrades Werner

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc is a transportation and logistics company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded in 1956 by Clarence L. Werner, the company provides freight transportation and supply chain services to customers across North America.

The company’s operations include truckload transportation, dedicated transportation, and regional truckload services. Werner also provides logistics services, including freight brokerage, intermodal transportation, cross-border transportation, and supply chain management solutions.