Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) Downgraded by UBS Group

UBS Group lowered shares of Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note published on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. UBS Group currently has $39.00 price target on the transportation company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on WERN. StockNews.com upgraded Werner Enterprises from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Susquehanna reiterated a negative rating and set a $27.00 price target (down previously from $32.00) on shares of Werner Enterprises in a report on Monday, June 24th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $42.00 to $38.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an underperform rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Werner Enterprises from $46.00 to $42.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $38.69.

Werner Enterprises Trading Up 3.4 %

Werner Enterprises stock opened at $35.84 on Tuesday. Werner Enterprises has a 52 week low of $33.12 and a 52 week high of $47.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a current ratio of 1.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.36, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.41 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.19.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The transportation company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.14). Werner Enterprises had a return on equity of 6.15% and a net margin of 2.59%. The business had revenue of $769.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $788.30 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Werner Enterprises will post 1.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 1st. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Werner Enterprises’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.75%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jade Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Werner Enterprises during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,118,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Werner Enterprises by 0.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,854,948 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $228,050,000 after purchasing an additional 48,380 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA raised its position in Werner Enterprises by 14.8% during the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 305,501 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $11,951,000 after purchasing an additional 39,445 shares in the last quarter. Norden Group LLC raised its position in Werner Enterprises by 1,048.4% during the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 91,312 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,572,000 after purchasing an additional 83,361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Werner Enterprises by 35.3% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 169,187 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $7,168,000 after purchasing an additional 44,159 shares in the last quarter. 89.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Werner Enterprises Company Profile

Werner Enterprises, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in transporting truckload shipments of general commodities in interstate and intrastate commerce in the United States, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Truckload Transportation Services and Werner Logistics.