Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Hits New 52-Week Low – Here’s Why

Shares of Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $14.20 and last traded at $14.20, with a volume of 603875 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.53.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Marten Transport Trading Down 2.3 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.76 and a beta of 0.83. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.41.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The transportation company reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marten Transport Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Marten Transport’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.59%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Confluence Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Marten Transport by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 154,916 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,418,000 after buying an additional 754 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Marten Transport by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 33,049 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $516,000 after acquiring an additional 1,152 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Marten Transport by 54.6% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,376 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,192 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH boosted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 24,006 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $375,000 after purchasing an additional 1,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Marten Transport by 24.3% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,587 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $117,000 after purchasing an additional 1,289 shares in the last quarter. 69.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.