Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty-six research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $189.8750.

ODFL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on Old Dominion Freight Line from $180.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Bank of America set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Zacks Research raised shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $160.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Susquehanna reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $205.00 price target (up from $185.00) on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Wednesday.

Old Dominion Freight Line Trading Up 4.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:ODFL opened at $193.21 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $171.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $152.66. The company has a market cap of $40.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.65 and a beta of 1.28. Old Dominion Freight Line has a 12 month low of $126.01 and a 12 month high of $209.61.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The transportation company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. Old Dominion Freight Line had a return on equity of 24.03% and a net margin of 18.62%.The company had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. Old Dominion Freight Line’s revenue was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Old Dominion Freight Line will post 5.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This is a boost from Old Dominion Freight Line’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Old Dominion Freight Line’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.19%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Old Dominion Freight Line

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ODFL. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Old Dominion Freight Line by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,559 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $275,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 134.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,213 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,690,000 after purchasing an additional 5,866 shares in the last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line during the second quarter valued at approximately $610,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 65.5% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 412 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PDS Planning Inc grew its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 21.5% in the 2nd quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 1,605 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.82% of the company’s stock.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line is a U.S.-based less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation company that provides regional, inter-regional and national freight services. Founded in 1934 and headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, the company has grown from a regional carrier into a national freight network, operating a broad system of service centers and terminals to move shipments for shippers of varying sizes and industries.

The company’s core business is LTL trucking, offering scheduled pickup and delivery for palletized freight that does not require a full truckload.