Short Interest in Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) Increases By 20.9%

Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 2,032,909 shares, a growth of 20.9% from the February 12th total of 1,681,018 shares. Currently, 3.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 590,990 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 590,990 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days. Currently, 3.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Marten Transport Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of Marten Transport stock opened at $11.69 on Wednesday. Marten Transport has a twelve month low of $9.35 and a twelve month high of $15.42. The stock has a market cap of $953.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.14 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $12.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.57.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The transportation company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.02. Marten Transport had a return on equity of 2.27% and a net margin of 1.97%.The company had revenue of $210.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $207.22 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.07 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Marten Transport will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Marten Transport Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be given a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Marten Transport’s payout ratio is 109.09%.

Institutional Trading of Marten Transport

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Marten Transport by 2,083.8% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,555 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 2,438 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Marten Transport by 660.8% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,929 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 2,544 shares during the period. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Marten Transport in the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Marten Transport in the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new position in Marten Transport in the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Marten Transport from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. Zacks Research raised shares of Marten Transport from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Marten Transport in a report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

About Marten Transport

Marten Transport, Inc is a North American transportation services provider offering temperature-controlled and dry van truckload services. Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Mondovi, Wisconsin, the company specializes in full truckload, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal and port drayage solutions. Its core focus on refrigerated and produce freight has made it a key partner for food manufacturers, retailers and other shippers requiring strict temperature management.

The company maintains a modern fleet of tractors and trailers equipped with advanced telematics, electronic logging devices and continuous temperature monitoring.