Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Barclays lifted their target price on Heartland Express from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Heartland Express in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group lifted their price target on Heartland Express from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Heartland Express from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Heartland Express currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $11.20.

Heartland Express Price Performance

NASDAQ:HTLD opened at $13.27 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $10.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.72. The firm has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a P/E ratio of -23.70 and a beta of 1.11. Heartland Express has a 52-week low of $6.99 and a 52-week high of $13.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported ($0.06) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $153.81 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $177.30 million. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 3.68% and a negative net margin of 5.69%.Heartland Express’s revenue was down 19.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.18) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Heartland Express will post -0.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 24th were given a dividend of $0.02 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 24th. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Heartland Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -14.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heartland Express

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HTLD. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Heartland Express during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 76.7% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,905 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,261 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 185.5% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,673 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 3,036 shares in the last quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Heartland Express in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Heartland Express in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $89,000. 53.45% of the stock is currently 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.