Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Shares Gap Down to $16.76

Shares of Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $16.76, but opened at $16.39. Marten Transport shares last traded at $16.49, with a volume of 37,723 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Vertical Research upgraded Marten Transport from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 10th.

Marten Transport Stock Down 2.5 %

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $18.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.05. The company has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.26 and a beta of 0.79.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The transportation company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.03). Marten Transport had a net margin of 6.22% and a return on equity of 9.48%. The business had revenue of $268.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $271.62 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.31 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 16.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. Marten Transport’s payout ratio is presently 27.59%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marten Transport in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $505,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in Marten Transport by 0.9% during the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 369,203 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $7,133,000 after acquiring an additional 3,285 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in Marten Transport in the third quarter valued at $12,907,000. Scopus Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,141,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Marten Transport by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 753,287 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $14,847,000 after purchasing an additional 26,864 shares during the last quarter. 69.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marten Transport Company Profile

Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United State, Mexico, and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment, as well as dry freight; and regional short-haul and medium-to-long-haul full-load transportation services.