Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) Cut to “Neutral” at Citigroup

Citigroup lowered shares of Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report published on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has $216.00 price objective on the transportation company’s stock.

ODFL has been the subject of a number of other reports. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $172.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $217.00 price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Thursday. Barclays set a $185.00 price objective on Old Dominion Freight Line in a report on Thursday. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $165.00 target price on Old Dominion Freight Line in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Old Dominion Freight Line from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $205.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Old Dominion Freight Line presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $185.46.

Old Dominion Freight Line Stock Performance

Old Dominion Freight Line stock opened at $202.47 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $42.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.92, a P/E/G ratio of 10.17 and a beta of 1.28. The business’s fifty day moving average is $166.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $151.57. Old Dominion Freight Line has a 52 week low of $126.01 and a 52 week high of $209.61.

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The transportation company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.30 billion. Old Dominion Freight Line had a return on equity of 24.03% and a net margin of 18.62%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Old Dominion Freight Line will post 5.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Old Dominion Freight Line Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This is a positive change from Old Dominion Freight Line’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Old Dominion Freight Line’s payout ratio is currently 23.19%.

Institutional Trading of Old Dominion Freight Line

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Truist Financial Corp boosted its stake in Old Dominion Freight Line by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 88,119 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,405,000 after purchasing an additional 10,046 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in Old Dominion Freight Line during the 3rd quarter worth $1,999,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in Old Dominion Freight Line by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 81,271 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,441,000 after buying an additional 7,709 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 440.7% during the third quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 8,564 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,206,000 after buying an additional 6,980 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 186.8% in the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 57,018 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $8,027,000 after acquiring an additional 37,134 shares during the period. 77.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Old Dominion Freight Line

Here are the key news stories impacting Old Dominion Freight Line this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results modestly beat expectations (EPS $1.09 vs. $1.06) and management set cautious Q1 revenue guidance ($1.25B–$1.30B), signaling the freight market may be stabilizing — investors viewed this as the start of a recovery. Old Dominion Freight Line: Already Trading On A Strong Recovery
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts raised estimates/price targets after the quarter and called out the beat — the aggregate analyst activity (raises from Jefferies, Evercore, TD Cowen and others) supported upside momentum. Analysts Boost Their Forecasts After Better-Than-Expected Q4 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: A large, high-profile price-target upgrade (reported coverage on the Morgan Stanley move) produced an outsized intraday jump earlier in the week, amplifying follow-through buying. Old Dominion Climbs 9.89% as Morgan Stanley Hikes PT
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry commentary and management commentary point to early signs of improvement — “freight market starting to feel a little bit better” — but language remains cautious and recovery is described as early/still uneven. Old Dominion: Freight market ‘starting to feel a little bit better’
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst activity: Citi reaffirmed neutral with a $216 PT while other shops moved ratings/targets (some to “hold”/“in-line”) — this broad but mixed analyst reaction keeps sentiment balanced rather than uniformly bullish. Citi Reaffirms Neutral
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue declined 5.7% Y/Y and LTL tons per day fell ~10.7% — volume weakness remains the primary headwind and a key reason some analysts trimmed ratings or kept conservative targets. Analyst note on volume declines
• Negative Sentiment: Some sell-side moves are negative: Robert W. Baird downgraded to underperform and other firms (Wells Fargo, JPMorgan in context) left targets below the current share price, creating downside risk if volume recovery stalls. Baird Downgrades Old Dominion
• Negative Sentiment: Regional economic commentary (Old Dominion University forecast) points to slowing local growth, a modest macro risk for freight demand if softening extends. Old Dominion University Economic Forecast

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line is a U.S.-based less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation company that provides regional, inter-regional and national freight services. Founded in 1934 and headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, the company has grown from a regional carrier into a national freight network, operating a broad system of service centers and terminals to move shipments for shippers of varying sizes and industries.

The company’s core business is LTL trucking, offering scheduled pickup and delivery for palletized freight that does not require a full truckload.