Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) Raised to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on LSTR. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Landstar System in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Landstar System from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore set a $181.00 target price on shares of Landstar System in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $193.00 target price on shares of Landstar System in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Landstar System from $147.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $179.36.

Landstar System Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LSTR opened at $176.04 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.97 billion, a PE ratio of 48.63 and a beta of 0.85. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $165.98 and its 200 day moving average is $151.46. Landstar System has a 12 month low of $119.32 and a 12 month high of $195.84.

Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.05. Landstar System had a net margin of 2.62% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The company had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.95 EPS. Landstar System’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Landstar System will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Landstar System declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 28th that permits the company to buyback 1,115,195,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to repurchase up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Landstar System during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Landstar System by 320.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 189 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Landstar System during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Landstar System by 132.7% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 249 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in Landstar System by 81.0% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 277 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. 97.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Landstar System Company Profile

Landstar System, Inc provides integrated transportation management solutions through a network of independent agents and third-party capacity providers. The company specializes in truckload brokerage, intermodal, air and ocean freight, expedited and heavy-haul services, along with value-added offerings such as cargo insurance, customs brokerage and supply chain management. Landstar’s proprietary technology platform enables real-time load matching, shipment tracking and data analytics to optimize fleet utilization and improve customer service.

Founded in 1968 and headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Landstar pioneered an asset-light brokerage model that has evolved into a global logistics operation.