Wall Street Zen Downgrades Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) to Sell

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report issued on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on HTLD. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Heartland Express in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Heartland Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley set a $9.00 price objective on shares of Heartland Express in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Barclays lifted their target price on Heartland Express from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Heartland Express from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $9.75.

Heartland Express Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of HTLD stock opened at $10.09 on Friday. Heartland Express has a 12-month low of $6.99 and a 12-month high of $11.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $9.48 and a 200-day moving average of $8.63. The company has a market capitalization of $781.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.42 and a beta of 1.13.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The transportation company reported ($0.11) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $172.43 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $209.68 million. Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 4.01% and a negative return on equity of 4.37%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Heartland Express will post 0.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in Heartland Express by 185.5% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,673 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 3,036 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Heartland Express during the 3rd quarter worth about $89,000. Autumn Glory Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Heartland Express during the 3rd quarter worth about $89,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Heartland Express by 51.3% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,549 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $97,000 after buying an additional 3,918 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. bought a new position in Heartland Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $101,000. 53.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc (NASDAQ: HTLD) is a publicly traded truckload carrier headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa. The company specializes in full truckload transportation, offering dry-van services that connect shippers with customers across the continental United States. Its primary focus is on over-the-road freight movements, serving industries such as manufacturing, retail, and consumer goods.

Founded in 1978 as Heartland Motor Freight, the company has grown from a regional carrier into one of the larger U.S.