Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Announces Earnings Results

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN – Get Rating) issued its earnings results on Tuesday. The transportation company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.01, Briefing.com reports. Marten Transport had a net margin of 9.07% and a return on equity of 16.58%. The company had revenue of $322.58 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $318.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.30 earnings per share. Marten Transport’s quarterly revenue was up 20.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Marten Transport Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of MRTN opened at $20.56 on Wednesday. Marten Transport has a fifty-two week low of $15.76 and a fifty-two week high of $23.43. The company has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.34 and a beta of 0.90. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $20.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.09.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 12th. Marten Transport’s payout ratio is currently 17.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MRTN shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Marten Transport from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 5th. Stephens upped their target price on shares of Marten Transport from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 18th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRTN. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Marten Transport during the 1st quarter worth approximately $47,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 108.6% in the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,790 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 1,973 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the 1st quarter valued at $104,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the 2nd quarter valued at $204,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the 1st quarter valued at $290,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.27% of the company’s stock.

About Marten Transport

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Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It 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.