Landstar System, Inc. $LSTR Shares Bought by Brandes Investment Partners LP

Brandes Investment Partners LP grew its holdings in shares of Landstar System, Inc. (NASDAQ:LSTR) by 51.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,634 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,577 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP’s holdings in Landstar System were worth $1,097,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in Landstar System by 151,424.4% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 6,294,325 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $904,495,000 after buying an additional 6,290,171 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Landstar System by 179.3% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 552,096 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $79,336,000 after buying an additional 354,449 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its stake in Landstar System by 24.1% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,761,526 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $216,242,000 after buying an additional 341,808 shares in the last quarter. Rivulet Capital LLC bought a new position in Landstar System during the third quarter valued at about $36,645,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Landstar System during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,280,000. 97.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Landstar System Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ LSTR opened at $218.92 on Thursday. Landstar System, Inc. has a one year low of $119.32 and a one year high of $228.46. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $185.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $161.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.43 billion, a PE ratio of 60.48 and a beta of 0.88.

Landstar System (NASDAQ:LSTR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The transportation company reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.05. Landstar System had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 2.62%.The company had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.16 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Landstar System, Inc. will post 5.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Landstar System declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, April 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase 1,115,195,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the transportation company to purchase up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Landstar System Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 19th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 19th. Landstar System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Landstar System

In related news, Director Diana M. Murphy sold 11,246 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.28, for a total value of $2,488,514.88. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,171,791.84. This trade represents a 37.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on LSTR shares. Robert W. Baird set a $193.00 target price on Landstar System in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group increased their price target on Landstar System from $147.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Susquehanna increased their price target on Landstar System from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Landstar System from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Landstar System from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $183.00.

Landstar System Company Profile

Landstar System, Inc provides integrated transportation management solutions through a network of independent agents and third-party capacity providers. The company specializes in truckload brokerage, intermodal, air and ocean freight, expedited and heavy-haul services, along with value-added offerings such as cargo insurance, customs brokerage and supply chain management. Landstar’s proprietary technology platform enables real-time load matching, shipment tracking and data analytics to optimize fleet utilization and improve customer service.

Founded in 1968 and headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Landstar pioneered an asset-light brokerage model that has evolved into a global logistics operation.