Analysts Set Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN) Price Target at $41.54

Shares of Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the sixteen ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have assigned a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $41.5385.

A number of research firms recently commented on WERN. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Werner Enterprises from $39.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Susquehanna upgraded shares of Werner Enterprises from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $44.00 in a report on Thursday, July 30th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $33.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th.

Werner Enterprises Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:WERN opened at $38.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a P/E ratio of -50.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Werner Enterprises has a 12-month low of $23.06 and a 12-month high of $47.49. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.74.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The transportation company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.02). Werner Enterprises had a positive return on equity of 1.18% and a negative net margin of 1.42%.The company had revenue of $813.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $931.12 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 24.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Werner Enterprises will post 1.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Investors of record on Monday, October 5th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 5th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Werner Enterprises’s payout ratio is presently -73.68%.

Institutional Trading of Werner Enterprises

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WERN. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Werner Enterprises in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Werner Enterprises during the second quarter worth approximately $45,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Werner Enterprises by 41.3% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new stake in Werner Enterprises in the second quarter worth approximately $128,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in Werner Enterprises by 28.3% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,261 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $98,000 after buying an additional 719 shares during the period. 89.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

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.