Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Acquires 1,084 Shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,502 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,084 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services were worth $8,277,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services during the 4th quarter valued at about $146,618,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 76,135 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,993,000 after acquiring an additional 2,722 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 12,151 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,074,000 after acquiring an additional 1,746 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 130,765 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $22,991,000 after acquiring an additional 18,127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Korea Investment CORP lifted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 101.6% in the 4th quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 69,922 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,933,000 after purchasing an additional 35,240 shares during the period. 74.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Performance

JBHT stock opened at $152.78 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $15.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.94. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $144.34 and a 1 year high of $200.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $160.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.70.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The transportation company reported $1.53 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.47 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 6.37 earnings per share for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This is an increase from J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.15%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.65%.

Insider Transactions at J.B. Hunt Transport Services

In related news, Director James K. Thompson sold 4,400 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.37, for a total transaction of $771,628.00. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Darren P. Field sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on JBHT. Susquehanna downgraded J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “positive” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $200.00 to $165.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $207.00 to $202.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.55.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile

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.