Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) Short Interest Update

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 15,108,424 shares, a growth of 36.0% from the January 15th total of 11,109,972 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,912,407 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.9 days. Approximately 8.0% of the shares of the company are short sold. Approximately 8.0% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,912,407 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.9 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Old Dominion Freight Line

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Truist Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 12.9% in the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 88,119 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,405,000 after acquiring an additional 10,046 shares in the last quarter. Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd. purchased a new position in Old Dominion Freight Line in the third quarter worth $4,307,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in Old Dominion Freight Line in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,999,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Old Dominion Freight Line by 10.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 81,271 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,441,000 after purchasing an additional 7,709 shares during the period. Finally, Ascent Group LLC increased its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 440.7% during the 3rd quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 8,564 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,206,000 after purchasing an additional 6,980 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.82% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on ODFL shares. Barclays set a $185.00 price objective on Old Dominion Freight Line in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $180.00 to $213.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $172.00 to $170.00 in a report on Monday, December 1st. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $150.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Old Dominion Freight Line presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $189.88.

Old Dominion Freight Line Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ODFL traded up $7.70 on Friday, hitting $193.21. The stock had a trading volume of 2,096,801 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,672,617. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $171.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $152.62. Old Dominion Freight Line has a twelve month low of $126.01 and a twelve month high of $209.61. The company has a market capitalization 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 (NASDAQ:ODFL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The transportation company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.30 billion. Old Dominion Freight Line had a net margin of 18.62% and a return on equity of 24.03%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.23 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Old Dominion Freight Line will post 5.68 EPS for the current year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Increases Dividend

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

Old Dominion Freight Line Company Profile

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.