Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Issues Earnings Results

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The transportation company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.12, Yahoo Finance reports. Marten Transport had a return on equity of 9.48% and a net margin of 6.22%. The firm had revenue of $249.67 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $262.77 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.28 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 16.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Marten Transport Stock Down 1.2 %

Marten Transport stock traded down $0.20 during trading on Thursday, hitting $15.97. The stock had a trading volume of 774,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 461,460. Marten Transport has a 1 year low of $15.87 and a 1 year high of $23.38. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $18.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.03. The stock has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.59 and a beta of 0.79.

Marten Transport Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. Marten Transport’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.59%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marten Transport

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MRTN. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Marten Transport in the first quarter valued at approximately $47,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Marten Transport by 1,997.7% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,706 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 2,577 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in Marten Transport by 108.6% during the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 3,790 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,973 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Middle East FZE bought a new stake in Marten Transport during the fourth quarter worth about $71,000. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Marten Transport in the 1st quarter worth about $104,000. 69.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Vertical Research raised shares of Marten Transport from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th.

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.