Heartland Express, Inc. (HTLD) has declared a special dividend of $0.50 per share, along with its regular common stock dividend of $0.02 per share. Both the dividends are payable on October 1, 2021, to stockholders of record at the close of business on September 1, 2021.
Heartland Express engages in the provision of short-to-medium haul truckload carrier services. Following the announcement, shares of the company gained 3.6% on Friday to close at $16.96.
The company said that the special dividend was not to be deemed as a return of capital. (See Heartland Express stock charts on TipRanks)
Meanwhile, the board has approved share repurchase of up to 3 million shares of its outstanding common stock in addition to the 3,75 million shares remaining under a prior authorization. The plan comes with no expiration date and the repurchases will be carried out as and when determined by Heartland Express in the open market or private transactions.
Last month, Robert W. Baird analyst Garrett Holland maintained a Hold rating on the stock with a price target of $19 (upside potential of 12%).
Holland said, “The industry pricing outlook has improved and strong demand looks durable and likely to extend into 2022, but challenges in attracting drivers likely continue to weigh on top-line growth and OR improvement going forward.”
The rest of the Street is cautiously optimistic about the stock with a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on 2 Buys and 3 Holds. The average Heartland Express price target of $19.20 implies 13.2% upside potential from current levels.
TipRanks data shows that financial blogger opinions are 100% Bullish on HTLD, compared to the sector average of 71%.
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