Rush Enterprises (NASDAQ:RUSHA) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Rush Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUSHA)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $83.55 and last traded at $82.99, with a volume of 7897 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $82.76.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on RUSHA. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Rush Enterprises in a research note on Monday, April 27th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Rush Enterprises from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut Rush Enterprises from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 14th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Rush Enterprises from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Rush Enterprises from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rush Enterprises currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.00.

Rush Enterprises Stock Performance

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.56. The company has a market cap of $6.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Rush Enterprises shares are set to split on the morning of Tuesday, August 11th. The 3-2 split was recently announced. The newly minted shares will be payable to shareholders after the market closes on Monday, August 10th.

Rush Enterprises (NASDAQ:RUSHA) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.89 billion. Rush Enterprises had a return on equity of 11.65% and a net margin of 3.67%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Rush Enterprises, Inc. will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rush Enterprises Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 9th. Rush Enterprises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.87%.

Insider Transactions at Rush Enterprises

In other news, SVP Michael L. Goldstone sold 2,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.05, for a total value of $194,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 12,590 shares in the company, valued at $1,020,419.50. This represents a 16.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Steven L. Keller sold 20,678 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.73, for a total value of $1,669,334.94. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 84,374 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,811,513.02. The trade was a 19.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 112,250 shares of company stock worth $9,092,352. Corporate insiders own 12.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rush Enterprises

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Rush Enterprises by 75.4% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 407 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rush Enterprises by 495.4% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 518 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in shares of Rush Enterprises by 211.4% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 545 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the period. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rush Enterprises in the third quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in Rush Enterprises by 5,790.9% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares during the last quarter. 84.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Rush Enterprises

Rush Enterprises, Inc, headquartered in New Braunfels, Texas, is a leading distributor of commercial vehicles and related products in the United States. Through its Rush Truck Centers subsidiary, the company sells new and used medium- and heavy-duty trucks, buses and specialty vehicles, while also offering factory-authorized parts, collision repair, maintenance and warranty support across its network of dealerships.

Founded in 1965, Rush Enterprises has grown to encompass more than 150 locations in over 20 states, partnering with major manufacturers including Kenworth, Peterbilt, Freightliner, Volvo and Mack.