Universal Logistics (NASDAQ:ULH) Hits New 12-Month High After Dividend Announcement

Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULH) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $48.63 and last traded at $47.70, with a volume of 130662 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $32.89.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.105 per share. This represents a $0.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. Universal Logistics’s payout ratio is currently 9.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Universal Logistics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Universal Logistics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $35.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th.

Universal Logistics Trading Up 39.4 %

The company has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.01 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $34.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $29.61.

Universal Logistics (NASDAQ:ULH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The transportation company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.10. Universal Logistics had a net margin of 7.02% and a return on equity of 23.60%. The firm had revenue of $390.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $377.30 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. will post 3.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ULH. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Universal Logistics by 16.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,115,321 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $53,264,000 after purchasing an additional 295,701 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Universal Logistics by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 799,351 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $22,400,000 after buying an additional 12,826 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Universal Logistics by 0.9% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 169,090 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,258,000 after buying an additional 1,560 shares in the last quarter. Scopus Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in Universal Logistics by 49.7% during the 3rd quarter. Scopus Asset Management L.P. now owns 135,500 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,412,000 after acquiring an additional 45,000 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in Universal Logistics by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 65,244 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,828,000 after acquiring an additional 7,204 shares in the last quarter. 25.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Universal Logistics

Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc provides transportation and logistics solutions in the United States, Mexico, Canada, and Colombia. The company offers truckload services, which include dry van, flatbed, heavy-haul, and refrigerated operations; domestic and international freight forwarding, and customs brokerage services.