J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) Shares Purchased by Westfield Capital Management Co. LP

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 438,407 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,234 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services were worth $87,567,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd raised its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 34,963 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,984,000 after acquiring an additional 2,761 shares in the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the fourth quarter worth $1,463,000. Balentine LLC raised its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 16.5% in the fourth quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 1,469 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 26.6% in the fourth quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 3,006 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $600,000 after buying an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the fourth quarter valued at $185,299,000. 74.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JBHT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays dropped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $200.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Bank of America dropped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $215.00 to $199.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $218.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $194.24.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Trading Down 0.2 %

NASDAQ:JBHT traded down $0.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $157.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 462,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 861,042. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $177.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $190.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $155.43 and a twelve month high of $219.51. The stock has a market cap of $16.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.17.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The transportation company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.31). The firm had revenue of $2.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.12 billion. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 5.25% and a return on equity of 16.25%. On average, equities analysts predict that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.48 EPS for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th were paid a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 9th. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.30%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Brian Webb sold 900 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.54, for a total value of $187,686.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,032 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,134,773.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Brian Webb sold 900 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.54, for a total value of $187,686.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,032 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,134,773.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Patrick J. Ottensmeyer purchased 5,000 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $202.99 per share, for a total transaction of $1,014,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,014,950. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc provides surface transportation, delivery, and logistic services in the United States. It operates through five segments: Intermodal (JBI), Dedicated Contract Services (DCS), Integrated Capacity Solutions (ICS), Final Mile Services (FMS), and Truckload (JBT). The JBI segment offers intermodal freight solutions.