Wabash National (NYSE:WNC) Downgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Wabash National (NYSE:WNC) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

Wabash National Trading Down 3.6 %

Shares of WNC stock opened at $27.50 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.93. Wabash National has a 1 year low of $20.09 and a 1 year high of $30.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $27.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.24 billion, a PE ratio of 5.72 and a beta of 1.58.

Wabash National (NYSE:WNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.18. Wabash National had a return on equity of 46.87% and a net margin of 9.12%. The company had revenue of $596.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $633.68 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Wabash National will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Wabash National Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. Wabash National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.65%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Priyadarshi Sudhanshu sold 1,010 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total value of $27,330.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,386 shares in the company, valued at $172,805.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Larry J. Magee sold 3,086 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.50, for a total value of $81,779.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 114,146 shares in the company, valued at $3,024,869. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Priyadarshi Sudhanshu sold 1,010 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total value of $27,330.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $172,805.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wabash National

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WNC. Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in shares of Wabash National by 4.2% during the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 39,348 shares of the company’s stock valued at $584,000 after purchasing an additional 1,595 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in Wabash National by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 44,274 shares of the company’s stock worth $657,000 after acquiring an additional 2,628 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Wabash National by 55.4% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 26,736 shares of the company’s stock worth $397,000 after acquiring an additional 9,533 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its stake in Wabash National by 12.9% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 42,203 shares of the company’s stock worth $626,000 after acquiring an additional 4,808 shares in the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. purchased a new stake in Wabash National in the 1st quarter worth about $403,000. 97.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wabash National Company Profile

Wabash National Corporation provides connected solutions for the transportation, logistics, and distribution industries primarily in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Transportation Solutions and Parts & Services. The Transportation Solutions segment designs and manufactures transportation-related equipment and products dry and refrigerated van trailers, platform trailers, tank trailers, and truck-mounted tanks; truck bodies for dry-freight transportation; cargo and cargo XL bodies for commercial applications; refrigerated truck bodies; platform truck bodies; and used trailers, as well as laminated hardwood oak flooring products.