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

by · The Cerbat Gem

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD – Get Free Report) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on HTLD. Zacks Research lowered shares of Heartland Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Heartland Express in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Heartland Express from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Heartland Express from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Heartland Express has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $13.00.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Heartland Express

Heartland Express Price Performance

HTLD opened at $11.87 on Friday. Heartland Express has a 1 year low of $6.99 and a 1 year high of $16.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.58. The company has a market capitalization of $917.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -42.39 and a beta of 1.33. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $12.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.90.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The transportation company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter. Heartland Express had a negative net margin of 2.98% and a negative return on equity of 0.92%. The company had revenue of $152.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $185.08 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.14) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Heartland Express will post 0.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Heartland Express

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Heartland Express by 18.1% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,525 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 999 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Heartland Express in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Susquehanna International Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Heartland Express by 13.0% during the second quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP now owns 27,476 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $418,000 after acquiring an additional 3,165 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Heartland Express by 2.0% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 222,049 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,309,000 after purchasing an additional 4,313 shares during the period. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in shares of Heartland Express by 28.8% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 26,875 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 6,002 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 53.45% of the company’s stock.

About Heartland Express

(Get Free Report)

Heartland Express, Inc is a transportation and logistics company that provides asset-based truckload services in North America. The company primarily operates a fleet of dry van tractors and trailers, transporting general freight that does not require temperature control.

Its services include irregular-route and regional truckload transportation, dedicated freight, expedited shipping, and logistics support. Heartland Express serves customers across the United States and also provides cross-border transportation involving Canada and Mexico.

Founded in 1978, the company is headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa.

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