Wall Street Zen Upgrades ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) to “Strong-Buy”

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

ARCB has been the subject of a number of other research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $172.00 target price on shares of ArcBest in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of ArcBest in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Stephens upgraded ArcBest to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of ArcBest from $175.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “cautious” rating on shares of ArcBest in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $153.15.

ArcBest Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of ARCB opened at $125.44 on Friday. ArcBest has a twelve month low of $59.43 and a twelve month high of $176.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.97, a PEG ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.70. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $131.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. ArcBest had a return on equity of 7.92% and a net margin of 0.39%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.36 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that ArcBest will post 7.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Jason Parks sold 855 shares of ArcBest stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.09, for a total value of $115,501.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 3,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $512,531.46. The trade was a 18.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Erin Gattis sold 6,163 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $862,820.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 24,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,400,040. This trade represents a 20.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 12,818 shares of company stock worth $1,793,568 over the last ninety days. 0.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ArcBest

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ARCB. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. acquired a new stake in ArcBest in the second quarter worth about $74,000. Nykredit A S bought a new stake in ArcBest in the second quarter worth about $75,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in ArcBest in the second quarter worth about $92,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in ArcBest by 8.2% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,775 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $175,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in ArcBest in the 1st quarter valued at about $215,000. 99.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ArcBest Company Profile

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCB) is a multibillion-dollar logistics company headquartered in Fort Smith, Arkansas. The company provides freight transportation and supply chain solutions through a combination of asset-based and asset-light operations, serving businesses across North America and supporting select international shipping needs.

Its asset-based business is led by ABF Freight, a less-than-truckload carrier that transports palletized and industrial freight. ArcBest also offers expedited transportation, truckload and brokerage services, intermodal transportation, managed transportation, warehouse and distribution support, and supply chain consulting.