ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) Trading 5.8% Higher – Time to Buy?

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ:ARCB) shot up 5.8% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $89.75 and last traded at $90.2550. 541,676 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 49% from the average session volume of 363,131 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.31.

Key ArcBest News

Here are the key news stories impacting ArcBest this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue slightly beat expectations — Q4 revenue of $972.7M topped the ~ $963.7M analyst view, showing resilience in sales versus the prior year decline. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Board changes and a quarterly dividend announced — management added two board members and declared a dividend, actions investors often view as shareholder-friendly and supportive of the equity. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Conference call materials and slide deck available — management hosted an earnings call and published slides/press materials that may provide additional color for investors who attended or review the deck. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest report shows anomalous/zero figures for late January — the published data appears inconsistent and unlikely to be a meaningful driver until clarified. (Internal short-interest note)
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 EPS missed and the company swung to a loss — ArcBest reported EPS of -$0.36 versus consensus near $0.43–$0.45, and a net loss from continuing operations of $8.1M, down from profitable results a year earlier; that earnings miss is a clear negative fundamental catalyst. Read More.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ARCB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of ArcBest in a research report on Saturday. Zacks Research raised shares of ArcBest from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of ArcBest in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Stephens set a $85.00 target price on ArcBest in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on ArcBest from $80.00 to $74.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $92.83.

ArcBest Trading Up 5.8%

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.03 billion, a PE ratio of 21.43, a PEG ratio of 10.76 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The business’s 50-day moving average is $78.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.61.

ArcBest (NASDAQ:ARCB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.09). ArcBest had a return on equity of 8.24% and a net margin of 2.41%.The company had revenue of $972.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $963.74 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that ArcBest Corporation will post 7 earnings per share for the current year.

ArcBest Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be issued a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 10th. ArcBest’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.40%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in ArcBest by 26.9% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 675 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK boosted its position in ArcBest by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 4,375 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $306,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in shares of ArcBest by 0.3% during the third quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 69,115 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,829,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of ArcBest by 12.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,809 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of ArcBest by 19.8% in the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,645 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $127,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. 99.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ArcBest

ArcBest Corporation (NASDAQ: ARCB) is a transportation and logistics company that offers comprehensive freight and supply chain solutions across North America. Founded in 1923 as Arkansas Best Freight System, the company has evolved into a diversified service provider with both asset-based and asset-light operations. Its core businesses include less-than-truckload (LTL) shipping through ABF Freight, expedited full-truckload services via Panther Premium Logistics, and a range of logistics and supply chain management services under its ArcBest Integrated Logistics division.

The company’s asset-based operations also encompass FleetNet America, a provider of emergency roadside assistance and maintenance services for heavy-duty vehicles.