Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $18.00 and last traded at $17.85, with a volume of 284043 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.76.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on MRTN. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Marten Transport from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Marten Transport from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Marten Transport to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Stephens downgraded shares of Marten Transport from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marten Transport currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Marten Transport Price Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $15.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a PE ratio of 94.03 and a beta of 0.93.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $0.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $203.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $207.20 million. Marten Transport had a return on equity of 1.89% and a net margin of 1.68%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.05 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Marten Transport Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 16th. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Marten Transport’s payout ratio is 126.32%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marten Transport

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Marten Transport by 49.1% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 557,096 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $7,315,000 after purchasing an additional 183,349 shares during the period. Amundi purchased a new position in Marten Transport during the first quarter worth about $342,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in Marten Transport by 40.7% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 61,545 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $808,000 after purchasing an additional 17,801 shares during the period. London Co. of Virginia raised its stake in Marten Transport by 5.8% during the first quarter. London Co. of Virginia now owns 889,273 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,676,000 after purchasing an additional 48,697 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Marten Transport by 8.0% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 676,584 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $8,884,000 after purchasing an additional 50,264 shares during the period. 69.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Marten Transport

Marten Transport, Inc is a North American transportation services provider offering temperature-controlled and dry van truckload services. Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Mondovi, Wisconsin, the company specializes in full truckload, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal and port drayage solutions. Its core focus on refrigerated and produce freight has made it a key partner for food manufacturers, retailers and other shippers requiring strict temperature management.

The company maintains a modern fleet of tractors and trailers equipped with advanced telematics, electronic logging devices and continuous temperature monitoring.