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$14.61 $0.10 (0.7%)

04:00 PM EDT on 10/03/23

Heartland Express, Inc. (NASDAQ:HTLD)

CAPS Rating: No stars

The Company provides nationwide transportation service to major shippers, using late-model equipment and a combined fleet of company-owned and owner-operator tractors.

Current Price $14.61 Mkt Cap $1.3B
Open $14.41 P/E Ratio 19.15
Prev. Close $14.61 Div. (Yield) $0.08 (0.6%)
Daily Range $14.30 - $14.70 Volume 187,658
52-Wk Range $13.43 - $18.17 Avg. Daily Vol. 276,546

Caps

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All Players

74 Outperform
8 Underperform
 

All-Star Players

9 Outperform
1 Underperform
 

Wall Street

0 Outperform
0 Underperform
 

Top NASDAQ:HTLD Bull/Bear Pitches

The best Bull and Bear pitches based on recency and number of recommendations.

L8starter (55.76)
Submitted March 25, 2014

When I first looked at Heartland, it was a regional short to medium haul (<700 mi) trucking company with high inside ownership, no debt, regular sales growth and a sustainable strategy that avoided intermodal to kept the company out of competition… More

deuspecuniae (35.68)
Submitted April 25, 2008

A recessions a coming this summer and high oil prices are not going away since the falling dollar is to blame, and continued inflation is not going to bring the value of the dollar up any time soon. Burnanke was not helping this country by bailing… More

Recent Community Commentary

Read the most recent pitches from players about HTLD.

Recs

0
Member Avatar south66 (< 20) Submitted: 3/28/2014 1:19:20 PM : Outperform Start Price: $20.08 NASDAQ:HTLD Score: -154.17

prices have been rising for trucking and demand has increased

Recs

1
Member Avatar L8starter (55.76) Submitted: 3/25/2014 11:28:12 AM : Outperform Start Price: $16.52 NASDAQ:HTLD Score: -146.63

When I first looked at Heartland, it was a regional short to medium haul (<700 mi) trucking company with high inside ownership, no debt, regular sales growth and a sustainable strategy that avoided intermodal to kept the company out of competition with the rail industry.

Recently, the company took on some debt to acquire a very similar regional trucking company, Gordon Trucking, giving it national coverage. The stock popped 20% on the announcement.

Heartland prides itself on the newest fleet of trucks in the industry, almost all of which are 2012 or later. This meets emissions standards and helps keep fuel costs in check. It prides itself on a 98% on-time delivery record and among the highest safety record in the industry. (Recently acquired Gordon Trucking's reputation is at least as good.) It credits this to its drivers who are among the most experienced in the industry, almost all having 7 years or more driving experience. It prides itself on treating its drivers well by paying the most in the industry and ensuring lots of home time.

And Heartland's CFO is hilarious to listen to on investor calls.

All sounds great. I'm a fan. But a couple things concern me:

Although sales growth is steady, revenues and earnings are flat. Fuel costs are a persistent problem, which is partly why the fleet is so new.The biggest challenge, though, appears to be an industry-wide shortage of drivers. This is the biggest concern for me, because it could undermine their safety and efficiency record, threatening both their reputation and their margins.

As the CFO has stated repeatedly drivers are the heart of the company. That's why the company pays them well and keeps them near home. But according to Glassdoor comapny may not be living up to its promises. Before 2012, the ratings were uniformly positive, but they have fallen off substantially in the last two years. Many drivers complain that the high pay is an illusion, because the drivers aren't getting enough loads to pull (quite a concern in itself). Another frequent complaint is the unfulfilled promise of home time. Glassdoor ratings are about the same for Gordons. If these factors threaten retension and recruitment of experienced drivers, the company risks losing its competitive edge.

I'm keeping a bullish outlook, but paying close attention to these concerns.

Recs

0
Member Avatar lnlrmtg (< 20) Submitted: 1/8/2014 2:31:12 AM : Outperform Start Price: $18.50 NASDAQ:HTLD Score: -150.85

fundamentals

Leaderboard

Find the members with the highest scoring picks in HTLD.

Score Leader

wooddrva

wooddrva (< 20) Score: +365.82

The Score Leader is the player with the highest score across all their picks in HTLD.

Top
Pick
Member Name Member
Rating
Start
Date
Call Time
Frame
Start
Price
Stock
Gain
Index
Gain
Score Commentary
wooddrva < 20 11/13/2008 Underperform NS $10.78 +35.52% +401.33% +365.82 0 Comment
woNroFeybdooG 26.56 11/2/2009 Underperform 5Y $10.83 +34.86% +304.87% +270.01 0 Comment
timelyvalue 96.87 8/10/2010 Underperform 5Y $12.71 +14.93% +276.32% +261.39 0 Comment
Samurbri < 20 8/5/2008 Underperform NS $13.42 +8.91% +241.64% +232.73 0 Comment
CTrippn 75.37 9/21/2006 Underperform 1Y $11.25 +29.92% +237.44% +207.53 0 Comment
mickeyc21 22.99 3/4/2008 Underperform NS $10.95 +33.42% +233.66% +200.24 0 Comment
deuspecuniae 35.68 4/28/2008 Underperform 3M $11.91 +22.69% +212.70% +190.01 1 Comment
Rox6525 22.52 11/7/2007 Underperform 3Y $10.59 +37.95% +195.36% +157.41 0 Comment
NovaTodd 66.91 9/6/2022 Outperform 5Y $14.44 +1.21% +7.73% -6.52 0 Comment
IdahoAve 82.58 3/18/2021 Outperform 5Y $18.34 -20.32% +6.87% -27.20 0 Comment

Wall Street

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There are no Wall Street tracker picks for HTLD.