Norges Bank Makes New $146.62 Million Investment in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT)

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 859,121 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $146,618,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. iA Global Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,133 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,097 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $878,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 820 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 18.6% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 535 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $92,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 33.9% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 340 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.95% of the company’s stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Performance

Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock opened at $147.95 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $161.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.97. The firm has a market cap of $14.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.16. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $144.34 and a 12 month high of $200.40.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The transportation company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by ($0.09). J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a net margin of 4.72% and a return on equity of 14.05%. The business had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.47 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.19%. This is a positive change from J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.65%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on JBHT. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $167.00 to $161.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $205.00 price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Friday, March 7th. They set a “hold” rating and a $167.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $190.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $184.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Darren P. Field sold 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.67, for a total value of $194,004.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,881,282.74. The trade was a 6.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director James K. Thompson sold 4,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.37, for a total value of $771,628.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 23,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,131,541.83. The trade was a 15.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc provides surface transportation, delivery, and logistic services in the United States. It operates through five segments: Intermodal (JBI), Dedicated Contract Services (DCS), Integrated Capacity Solutions (ICS), Final Mile Services (FMS), and Truckload (JBT). The JBI segment offers intermodal freight solutions.