Hub Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HUBG) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Hub Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HUBG) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,810,251 shares, a growth of 20.1% from the December 15th total of 1,507,599 shares. Currently, 3.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 766,863 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.4 days. Based on an average daily volume of 766,863 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.4 days. Currently, 3.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gary Yablon acquired 4,566 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $43.73 per share, with a total value of $199,671.18. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 32,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,433,381.94. This trade represents a 16.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Phillip D. Yeager sold 32,000 shares of Hub Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.68, for a total transaction of $1,397,760.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 168,315 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,351,999.20. This trade represents a 15.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 3.48% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hub Group

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in HUBG. Moody National Bank Trust Division boosted its position in shares of Hub Group by 29.1% in the 4th quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 11,596 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $494,000 after purchasing an additional 2,615 shares during the period. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Hub Group during the 4th quarter worth $216,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in Hub Group by 148.3% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 75,985 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,238,000 after purchasing an additional 45,381 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hub Group by 111.8% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,755 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $129,000 after buying an additional 1,982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hub Group during the third quarter worth about $219,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 46.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on HUBG. Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Hub Group in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $48.00 price target (up previously from $38.00) on shares of Hub Group in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $38.00 price objective (up from $36.00) on shares of Hub Group in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of Hub Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of Hub Group in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Hub Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.53.

Hub Group Price Performance

Shares of Hub Group stock traded down $0.57 on Monday, hitting $46.87. 473,197 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 598,424. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $41.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.14. Hub Group has a 1-year low of $30.75 and a 1-year high of $47.68.

Hub Group (NASDAQ:HUBG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The transportation company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.49. Hub Group had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 6.58%. The business had revenue of $934.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $937.78 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Hub Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.800-1.900 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Hub Group will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hub Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th were paid a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Hub Group’s payout ratio is currently 28.90%.

Hub Group Company Profile

Hub Group, Inc (NASDAQ: HUBG) is a leading supply chain solutions provider headquartered in Oak Brook, Illinois. Founded in 1971 as Hub City Terminals and renamed Hub Group in 1978, the company completed its initial public offering in 2007. Over the decades, Hub Group has developed a comprehensive multimodal transportation network, leveraging partnerships with major rail carriers and an extensive drayage fleet to offer cost-efficient, sustainable shipping alternatives.

The company operates through two primary segments: Intermodal and Transportation Management.