C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHRW) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHRW) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-six analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation, sixteen have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $160.3478.

CHRW has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of C.H. Robinson Worldwide in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of C.H. Robinson Worldwide from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of C.H. Robinson Worldwide from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of C.H. Robinson Worldwide from $167.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $175.00 target price on shares of C.H. Robinson Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday.

C.H. Robinson Worldwide Stock Up 2.9%

NASDAQ CHRW opened at $170.77 on Friday. C.H. Robinson Worldwide has a 1-year low of $84.68 and a 1-year high of $170.81. The company has a market capitalization of $20.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.64, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.91. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $158.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

C.H. Robinson Worldwide (NASDAQ:CHRW) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The transportation company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.29 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $4.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.26 billion. C.H. Robinson Worldwide had a return on equity of 34.77% and a net margin of 3.64%.C.H. Robinson Worldwide’s revenue was down 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that C.H. Robinson Worldwide will post 4.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

C.H. Robinson Worldwide Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were paid a $0.63 dividend. This is an increase from C.H. Robinson Worldwide’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. C.H. Robinson Worldwide’s payout ratio is presently 51.12%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Michael John Short sold 2,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.91, for a total value of $386,964.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 55,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,930,631.78. This trade represents a 4.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Angela K. Freeman sold 49,884 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.71, for a total transaction of $7,468,133.64. Following the transaction, the insider owned 65,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,840,138.88. This trade represents a 43.15% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 97,540 shares of company stock worth $14,721,951. 1.47% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of C.H. Robinson Worldwide

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in C.H. Robinson Worldwide by 198.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,143,297 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $945,773,000 after purchasing an additional 4,751,034 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in C.H. Robinson Worldwide in the 2nd quarter valued at $118,976,000. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of C.H. Robinson Worldwide by 53.0% in the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,518,118 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $340,646,000 after buying an additional 1,218,968 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of C.H. Robinson Worldwide by 78.3% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,013,745 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $193,219,000 after acquiring an additional 884,160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new position in shares of C.H. Robinson Worldwide during the third quarter valued at $72,929,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.15% of the company’s stock.

About C.H. Robinson Worldwide

C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc is a third-party logistics provider founded in 1905 and headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Originally established as a produce brokerage firm, the company has since expanded its offerings to become one of the world’s largest freight and logistics intermediaries. C.H. Robinson leverages a global network of transportation providers, technology platforms, and in-house expertise to connect shippers and carriers across multiple modes of transportation.

The company’s primary services include truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), intermodal, air and ocean freight, and managed transportation solutions.