Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

ODFL has been the topic of a number of other reports. Bank of America set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays set a $185.00 price target on Old Dominion Freight Line in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Robert W. Baird lowered Old Dominion Freight Line from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $166.00 to $204.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Old Dominion Freight Line from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $189.88.

Old Dominion Freight Line Trading Down 4.6%

NASDAQ ODFL opened at $185.51 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.79 billion, a PE ratio of 38.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.71 and a beta of 1.28. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $170.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $152.49. Old Dominion Freight Line has a 12 month low of $126.01 and a 12 month high of $209.61.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The transportation company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. Old Dominion Freight Line had a return on equity of 24.03% and a net margin of 18.62%.The company had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.30 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Old Dominion Freight Line will post 5.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This is an increase from Old Dominion Freight Line’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Old Dominion Freight Line’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.19%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Old Dominion Freight Line

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Truist Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 12.9% during the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 88,119 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,405,000 after buying an additional 10,046 shares during the last quarter. Wilson Asset Management International PTY Ltd. purchased a new position in Old Dominion Freight Line during the 3rd quarter worth $4,307,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in the 3rd quarter worth $1,999,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 10.5% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 81,271 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,441,000 after purchasing an additional 7,709 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ascent Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 440.7% in the third quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 8,564 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,206,000 after purchasing an additional 6,980 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.82% of the company’s stock.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

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.