Patton Fund Management Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. $JBHT

Patton Fund Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:JBHT) by 987.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,982 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,788 shares during the period. Patton Fund Management Inc.’s holdings in J.B. Hunt Transport Services were worth $2,751,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 25.4% during the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 232 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 34.3% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC grew its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC now owns 4,189 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $814,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. grew its holdings in shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 39.1% in the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 178 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its position in J.B. Hunt Transport Services by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 798 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $155,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.95% of the company’s stock.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Stock Performance

NASDAQ:JBHT opened at $280.30 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $263.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $229.36. J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. has a 52-week low of $130.12 and a 52-week high of $293.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.43 billion, a PE ratio of 43.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.30.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ:JBHT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. J.B. Hunt Transport Services had a return on equity of 17.30% and a net margin of 5.13%.The firm had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.17 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. will post 7.27 EPS for the current year.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. J.B. Hunt Transport Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised J.B. Hunt Transport Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 7th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $240.00 price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $225.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services from $205.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Argus set a $285.00 price objective on shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services in a report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $239.87.

Insider Buying and Selling at J.B. Hunt Transport Services

In other J.B. Hunt Transport Services news, EVP Darren P. Field sold 4,000 shares of J.B. Hunt Transport Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.49, for a total transaction of $1,017,960.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 8,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,213,045.04. The trade was a 31.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Bradley W. Hicks sold 7,644 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.91, for a total transaction of $2,002,040.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 23,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,281,125.62. The trade was a 24.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,119 shares of company stock valued at $4,736,095. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About J.B. Hunt Transport Services

J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc is a leading provider of transportation and logistics solutions headquartered in Lowell, Arkansas. The company offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to move freight efficiently across North America, including intermodal, dedicated contract services, full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), final mile delivery and specialized transport.

In its intermodal segment, J.B. Hunt leverages a network of rail and truck assets to transport containers and trailers on major U.S.