ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCB) hit a new 52-week high on Saturday . The stock traded as high as $155.68 and last traded at $155.09, with a volume of 491651 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $146.08.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ARCB has been the subject of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on ArcBest from $102.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. UBS Group increased their price objective on ArcBest from $98.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen raised ArcBest from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Zacks Research raised ArcBest from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on ArcBest from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, ArcBest has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.42.

ArcBest Stock Up 6.2%

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $118.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 63.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.55.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.05. ArcBest had a return on equity of 6.15% and a net margin of 1.38%.The firm had revenue of $998.79 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $999.07 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.51 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that ArcBest Corporation will post 5.29 earnings per share for the current year.

ArcBest Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. ArcBest’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ArcBest

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of ArcBest by 1.5% in the first quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 6,162 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $606,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Amundi raised its position in shares of ArcBest by 54.6% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 7,478 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $736,000 after buying an additional 2,640 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in shares of ArcBest by 24.7% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 26,926 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,648,000 after buying an additional 5,325 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of ArcBest by 37.7% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 158,742 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $15,614,000 after buying an additional 43,429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of ArcBest by 2.2% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 124,826 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $12,278,000 after buying an additional 2,735 shares in the last quarter. 99.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ArcBest Company Profile

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCB) is a transportation and logistics company that offers comprehensive freight and supply chain solutions across North America. Founded in 1923 as Arkansas Best Freight System, the company has evolved into a diversified service provider with both asset-based and asset-light operations. Its core businesses include less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping through ABF Freight, expedited full-truckload services via Panther Premium Logistics, and a range of logistics and supply chain management services under its ArcBest Integrated Logistics division.

The company’s asset-based operations also encompass FleetNet America, a provider of emergency roadside assistance and maintenance services for heavy-duty vehicles.