Rush Enterprises (NASDAQ:RUSHA) Raised to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Rush Enterprises (NASDAQ:RUSHA) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on RUSHA. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $56.67 price target (up from $52.00) on shares of Rush Enterprises in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Zacks Research lowered Rush Enterprises from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Stephens reduced their target price on Rush Enterprises from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Rush Enterprises in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.26.

Rush Enterprises Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of RUSHA opened at $42.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.38. Rush Enterprises has a 1 year low of $30.45 and a 1 year high of $55.74. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.25. The firm has a market cap of $5.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.92.

Rush Enterprises (NASDAQ:RUSHA) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.01. Rush Enterprises had a net margin of 3.70% and a return on equity of 11.91%. The firm had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that Rush Enterprises will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Rush Enterprises

In related news, CEO William Rush sold 161,041 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.02, for a total value of $5,801,054.69. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 391,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,115,163.69. This represents a 29.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael Goldstone sold 4,725 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.13, for a total value of $170,730.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 28,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,023,548.93. This represents a 14.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 180,391 shares of company stock worth $6,501,145. Insiders own 12.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Rush Enterprises by 75.4% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 407 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Rush Enterprises by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $158,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its position in Rush Enterprises by 50.0% in the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 903 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Rush Enterprises during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Rush Enterprises by 11.0% in the second quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,542 shares of the company’s stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.43% of the company’s stock.

About Rush Enterprises

Rush Enterprises, Inc is a commercial vehicle solutions provider operating through the Rush Truck Centers network. The company sells new and used commercial trucks, including vehicles from manufacturers such as Peterbilt, International, Hino, Isuzu and Ford, along with related buses and specialty vehicles in selected markets.

In addition to vehicle sales, Rush provides parts, maintenance and repair services through its dealership network. Its offerings also include truck leasing and rentals, collision repair, mobile service, aftermarket products, and fleet-management and technology solutions designed to support commercial transportation operators.

Founded in 1965 and headquartered in New Braunfels, Texas, Rush has expanded from its original Peterbilt dealership into one of the largest commercial vehicle dealership networks in the United States.