Zions Bancorporation National Association UT Grows Position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Zions Bancorporation National Association UT grew its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) by 332.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,721 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,860 shares during the quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT’s holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services were worth $499,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of JBHT. AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 3.2% in the third quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 125,829 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $16,883,000 after buying an additional 3,890 shares in the last quarter. Eldred Rock Partners LLC increased its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter. Eldred Rock Partners LLC now owns 88,061 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,815,000 after acquiring an additional 9,345 shares during the period. Machina Capital S.A.S. purchased a new stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,627,000. AdvisorShares Investments LLC bought a new position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services in the 3rd quarter valued at $433,000. Finally, Savant Capital LLC boosted its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 145.6% in the 3rd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 21,689 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,910,000 after purchasing an additional 12,857 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.95% of the company’s stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ JBHT opened at $223.51 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.40, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.27. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a one year low of $122.79 and a one year high of $234.82. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $206.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $172.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.87.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The transportation company reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.81 by $0.09. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.99% and a return on equity of 16.33%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, October 22nd that permits the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the transportation company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 6th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 6th. This is a positive change from J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.32%.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Nicholas Hobbs sold 3,038 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.97, for a total value of $613,584.86. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 90,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,241,526.46. The trade was a 3.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO John Kuhlow sold 3,225 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.76, for a total value of $579,726.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 13,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,353,957.20. This trade represents a 19.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 32,316 shares of company stock valued at $6,727,749. Company insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JBHT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $176.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Vertical Research cut J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $200.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, January 8th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $174.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Evercore set a $222.00 target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Friday, January 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, J.B. Hunt Transport Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $200.05.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.