Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd Takes $204,000 Position in Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN)

Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 5,683 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $204,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 171.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,743 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $453,000 after acquiring an additional 7,422 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Werner Enterprises by 61.7% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 22,925 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $885,000 after purchasing an additional 8,746 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Werner Enterprises by 9.3% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 110,087 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,248,000 after purchasing an additional 9,406 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in Werner Enterprises in the third quarter valued at approximately $485,000. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 11.9% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 30,819 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,189,000 after buying an additional 3,282 shares in the last quarter. 89.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Werner Enterprises from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Werner Enterprises from $34.00 to $27.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $39.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Werner Enterprises in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $33.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Werner Enterprises from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.73.

Werner Enterprises Stock Performance

NASDAQ WERN opened at $27.28 on Tuesday. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.50 and a fifty-two week high of $42.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.60 and a beta of 1.06. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $32.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.52.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The transportation company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.15). Werner Enterprises had a net margin of 1.13% and a return on equity of 2.27%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Werner Enterprises Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. Werner Enterprises’s payout ratio is presently 101.82%.

About Werner Enterprises

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.