Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) Sets New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Marten Transport, Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRTN)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $15.27 and last traded at $15.31, with a volume of 22770 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $15.49.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRTN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Marten Transport from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Raymond James downgraded shares of Marten Transport from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th.

Marten Transport Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.24 billion, a PE ratio of 36.36 and a beta of 0.83.

Marten Transport (NASDAQ:MRTN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The transportation company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.02). Marten Transport had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 4.41%. The firm had revenue of $237.37 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $244.00 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Marten Transport, Ltd. will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marten Transport Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Marten Transport’s payout ratio is 57.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jerry M. Bauer bought 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were bought at an average price of $15.81 per share, for a total transaction of $158,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 156,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,473,379.64. This trade represents a 6.83 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 22.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marten Transport

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Nuance Investments LLC grew its stake in Marten Transport by 78.0% during the 2nd quarter. Nuance Investments LLC now owns 2,323,979 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $42,877,000 after buying an additional 1,018,673 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. acquired a new stake in Marten Transport in the second quarter worth about $5,334,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marten Transport by 13.1% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,402,776 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $25,881,000 after acquiring an additional 162,924 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Marten Transport by 22.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 685,308 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,130,000 after acquiring an additional 126,150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Marten Transport by 140.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 136,498 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,416,000 after purchasing an additional 79,689 shares during the last quarter. 69.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Marten Transport

Marten Transport, Ltd. operates as a temperature-sensitive truckload carrier for shippers in the United State, Mexico, and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Truckload, Dedicated, Intermodal, and Brokerage. The Truckload segment transports food and other consumer packaged goods that require a temperature-controlled or insulated environment, as well as dry freight; and regional short-haul and medium-to-long-haul full-load transportation services.