Man Group plc Buys Shares of 180,186 Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. $ODFL

Man Group plc purchased a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 180,186 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,028,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ODFL. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Old Dominion Freight Line by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,559 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 134.9% during the 1st 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 during the period. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line during the 2nd quarter valued at about $7,478,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line during the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,891,000. Finally, AXA S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 20,253 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,287,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. 77.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Old Dominion Freight Line Price Performance

Shares of ODFL stock opened at $199.43 on Thursday. Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. has a one year low of $126.01 and a one year high of $252.03. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $218.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $210.62. The company has a market capitalization of $41.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.43, a PEG ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 1.18.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. Old Dominion Freight Line had a return on equity of 24.87% and a net margin of 19.44%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.27 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. will post 5.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 2nd. Old Dominion Freight Line’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ODFL shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $235.00 to $250.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $228.00 price target (up from $224.00) on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $227.00 price target on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $226.55.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Cecil E. Jr. Overbey sold 19,952 shares of Old Dominion Freight Line stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.39, for a total transaction of $3,958,277.28. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 22,746 shares in the company, valued at $4,512,578.94. This trade represents a 46.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 8.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.