Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Trims Holdings in Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lessened its stake in Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD) by 4.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,062 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,707 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Heartland Express were worth $469,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Heartland Express in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,584,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Heartland Express by 132.8% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 225,713 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,695,000 after purchasing an additional 128,758 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Heartland Express by 14.6% during the first quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 666,675 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $7,960,000 after purchasing an additional 84,739 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in Heartland Express by 292.4% during the first quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 108,999 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,301,000 after purchasing an additional 81,220 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Heartland Express by 84.0% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 136,195 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,626,000 after purchasing an additional 62,172 shares during the period. 53.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Heartland Express Stock Performance

HTLD opened at $11.46 on Thursday. Heartland Express, Inc. has a twelve month low of $9.63 and a twelve month high of $15.56. The stock has a market cap of $905.92 million, a PE ratio of -67.41 and a beta of 0.69. The business’s 50 day moving average is $12.08 and its 200-day moving average is $11.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.02. The company had revenue of $274.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $275.23 million. Heartland Express had a negative return on equity of 2.84% and a negative net margin of 2.17%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.10 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Heartland Express, Inc. will post -0.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Heartland Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 27th were paid a dividend of $0.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 27th. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. Heartland Express’s payout ratio is -47.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HTLD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group downgraded shares of Heartland Express from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $15.00 to $13.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays raised their price target on Heartland Express from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Heartland Express from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $10.00 target price (down from $12.00) on shares of Heartland Express in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $12.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Heartland Express

In related news, CEO Michael J. Gerdin purchased 50,000 shares of Heartland Express stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $11.67 per share, with a total value of $583,500.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 1,196,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,965,699.06. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 39.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Heartland Express Profile

Heartland Express, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services.