Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Stock Price Down 3.8% – Should You Sell?

Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN)’s stock price dropped 3.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $30.25 and last traded at $29.8620. Approximately 112,526 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 958,740 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.04.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Werner Enterprises from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $27.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Werner Enterprises in a report on Monday, December 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and seven have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Werner Enterprises has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $26.93.

Werner Enterprises Stock Down 2.9%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 1.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.52, a P/E/G ratio of 21.07 and a beta of 1.08. The business’s 50-day moving average is $26.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.56.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The transportation company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.18). Werner Enterprises had a net margin of 0.85% and a return on equity of 0.14%. The firm had revenue of $712.04 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $763.63 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.15 EPS. Werner Enterprises’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 5th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 5th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Werner Enterprises’s payout ratio is presently 136.59%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Werner Enterprises

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 163.5% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 959 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 595 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Werner Enterprises during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 57.8% during the 2nd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,018 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 289.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,293 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 961 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 306.9% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,294 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 976 shares in the last quarter. 89.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc, founded in 1956 by Clarence L. “Chris” Werner, is a leading transportation and logistics provider based in Omaha, Nebraska. The company began as a one‐truck operation and has since grown into one of North America’s largest carriers, offering an array of services to support diverse supply chains.

Werner’s core business activities include full truckload dry van services, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal transport and brokerage solutions. The company also provides value-added services such as warehousing, freight management and fleet maintenance through its network of terminals and service centers.