Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Has $49.32 Million Holdings in Werner Enterprises, Inc. $WERN

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lessened its position in Werner Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WERN) by 14.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,611,313 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 278,876 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Werner Enterprises were worth $49,322,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new position in Werner Enterprises during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,201,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Werner Enterprises in the second quarter valued at $12,972,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Werner Enterprises by 17.2% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,893,705 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $79,172,000 after purchasing an additional 424,935 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 222.8% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 339,589 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $8,938,000 after buying an additional 234,394 shares during the period. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its position in shares of Werner Enterprises by 52.3% in the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 573,891 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $15,105,000 after buying an additional 197,155 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.32% of the company’s stock.

Werner Enterprises Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WERN opened at $29.69 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -123.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.09. Werner Enterprises, Inc. has a 1 year low of $23.02 and a 1 year high of $38.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.66.

Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ:WERN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The transportation company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.04). Werner Enterprises had a negative net margin of 0.48% and a positive return on equity of 0.04%. The firm had revenue of $737.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $767.51 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.08 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Werner Enterprises, Inc. will post 1.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Werner Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Monday, April 13th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 13th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Werner Enterprises’s payout ratio is presently -233.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on WERN shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Werner Enterprises in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered Werner Enterprises from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Werner Enterprises from $25.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Werner Enterprises from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Evercore increased their price target on shares of Werner Enterprises from $20.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $33.15.

Insider Activity at Werner Enterprises

In related news, COO Eric J. Downing sold 1,418 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.78, for a total value of $49,318.04. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 55,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,945,801.88. This represents a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

About Werner Enterprises

Werner Enterprises, Inc, founded in 1956 by Clarence L. “Chris” Werner, is a leading transportation and logistics provider based in Omaha, Nebraska. The company began as a one‐truck operation and has since grown into one of North America’s largest carriers, offering an array of services to support diverse supply chains.

Werner’s core business activities include full truckload dry van services, dedicated contract carriage, intermodal transport and brokerage solutions. The company also provides value-added services such as warehousing, freight management and fleet maintenance through its network of terminals and service centers.