Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

WERN has been the topic of several other research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Werner Enterprises from $25.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Susquehanna upped their price target on Werner Enterprises from $23.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Werner Enterprises from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $34.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $33.15.

Werner Enterprises Stock Up 3.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:WERN opened at $31.78 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market cap of $1.91 billion, a P/E ratio of -132.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.09. Werner Enterprises has a 12 month low of $23.02 and a 12 month high of $38.45. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $31.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.77.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The transportation company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.04). Werner Enterprises had a positive return on equity of 0.04% and a negative net margin of 0.48%.The company had revenue of $737.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $767.51 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.08 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Werner Enterprises will post 1.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Werner Enterprises

In other news, COO Eric J. Downing sold 1,428 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $49,980.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 57,364 shares in the company, valued at $2,007,740. This trade represents a 2.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Werner Enterprises

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 289.5% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,293 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 961 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 42.0% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,542 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 752 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Werner Enterprises by 41.3% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 49.0% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,429 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 799 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Werner Enterprises by 86.9% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,614 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $108,000 after acquiring an additional 1,680 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.32% of the company’s stock.

About Werner Enterprises

Werner Enterprises, Inc, founded in 1956 by Clarence L. “Chris” Werner, is a leading transportation and logistics provider based in Omaha, Nebraska. The company began as a one‐truck operation and has since grown into one of North America’s largest carriers, offering an array of services to support diverse supply chains.

Werner’s core business activities include full truckload dry van services, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal transport and brokerage solutions. The company also provides value-added services such as warehousing, freight management and fleet maintenance through its network of terminals and service centers.