Short Interest in Hub Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HUBG) Increases By 32.7%

Hub Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:HUBG) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 703,200 shares, a growth of 32.7% from the February 13th total of 529,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 555,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.3 days. Approximately 1.2% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Hub Group from $46.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Susquehanna raised Hub Group from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $55.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Hub Group in a research report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $41.00 target price for the company. Barclays cut their price target on Hub Group from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Benchmark upped their price target on Hub Group from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.82.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hub Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HUBG. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Hub Group by 48.4% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 950 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hub Group by 286.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,541 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 1,142 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hub Group by 803.3% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,888 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $84,000 after buying an additional 1,679 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Hub Group by 24.8% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,261 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Hub Group by 35.3% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,568 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares during the period. 46.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hub Group Stock Down 2.4 %

HUBG traded down $0.90 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $37.14. 283,673 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 552,362. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $42.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $44.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Hub Group has a 12-month low of $36.34 and a 12-month high of $53.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.84 and a beta of 0.93.

Hub Group (NASDAQ:HUBG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The transportation company reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.48. Hub Group had a return on equity of 7.10% and a net margin of 2.64%. Analysts predict that Hub Group will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hub Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Hub Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.41%.

Hub Group Company Profile

Hub Group, Inc, a supply chain solutions provider, offers transportation and logistics management services in North America. The company's transportation services include intermodal, truckload, less-than-truckload, flatbed, temperature-controlled, and dedicated and regional trucking, as well as final mile, railcar, small parcel, and international transportation.