Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Increases Position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) by 1.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 968,512 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,092 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services were worth $205,183,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Whittier Trust Co. grew its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 39.1% in the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 178 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 34.3% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 19,800.0% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 199 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC purchased a new position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. 74.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at J.B. Hunt Transport Services

In related news, insider Bradley W. Hicks sold 7,644 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $261.91, for a total transaction of $2,002,040.04. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 23,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,281,125.62. This represents a 24.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Spencer Frazier sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.20, for a total transaction of $516,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,188,752.80. This trade represents a 30.28% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 15,847 shares of company stock worth $4,162,861 over the last quarter. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on JBHT shares. Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $299.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $265.00 to $297.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 7th. Citigroup reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $286.30.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Price Performance

Shares of JBHT opened at $288.30 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $27.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.84, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.29. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $130.12 and a fifty-two week high of $299.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $278.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $241.57.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The transportation company reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.20. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 5.31% and a return on equity of 18.75%. The business had revenue of $3.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio is 25.50%.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Profile

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.