Meeder Asset Management Inc. Purchases New Holdings in Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,718 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Marten Transport by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,071,568 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $63,557,000 after purchasing an additional 23,201 shares during the period. Nuance Investments LLC increased its stake in Marten Transport by 21.7% in the 4th quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 3,196,811 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $49,902,000 after buying an additional 569,700 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Marten Transport by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,339,644 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $41,412,000 after buying an additional 14,088 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Marten Transport by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,803,045 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $28,146,000 after buying an additional 175,059 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Marten Transport by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,492,142 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $23,292,000 after buying an additional 31,303 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.12% of the company’s stock.

Marten Transport Stock Performance

NASDAQ MRTN opened at $13.80 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.92. Marten Transport, Ltd. has a one year low of $13.45 and a one year high of $19.26. The company has a market capitalization of $1.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.59 and a beta of 0.84.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The transportation company reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.01. Marten Transport had a net margin of 2.79% and a return on equity of 3.52%. Equities analysts expect that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Marten Transport’s payout ratio is currently 70.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Marten Transport from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th.

About Marten Transport

Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United State, Mexico, and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment, as well as dry freight; and regional short-haul and medium-to-long-haul full-load transportation services.