Rush Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUSHA) Shares Sold by William Blair Investment Management LLC

William Blair Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Rush Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:RUSHA) by 18.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 627,268 shares of the company’s stock after selling 142,341 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Rush Enterprises were worth $34,368,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC lifted its position in Rush Enterprises by 34.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,174,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $273,356,000 after purchasing an additional 1,336,528 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in Rush Enterprises by 0.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,349,597 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,129,000 after purchasing an additional 16,082 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Rush Enterprises by 1.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,616,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,390,000 after purchasing an additional 16,803 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its position in Rush Enterprises by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,222,719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,993,000 after purchasing an additional 36,326 shares during the period. Finally, Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. lifted its position in Rush Enterprises by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. now owns 789,190 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,240,000 after purchasing an additional 15,200 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.43% of the company’s stock.

Rush Enterprises Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:RUSHA opened at $52.90 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a market cap of $4.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.18, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.06. Rush Enterprises, Inc. has a 52 week low of $40.99 and a 52 week high of $65.43. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $58.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $56.49.

Rush Enterprises (NASDAQ:RUSHA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.09. Rush Enterprises had a net margin of 3.90% and a return on equity of 14.76%. The company had revenue of $2.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.86 billion. Research analysts predict that Rush Enterprises, Inc. will post 3.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Rush Enterprises Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.36%. Rush Enterprises’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rush Enterprises

In other news, Director Michael Mcroberts sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.52, for a total transaction of $234,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,771 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $922,918.92. This trade represents a 20.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jody Pollard sold 11,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.43, for a total transaction of $634,837.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $175,892.31. This trade represents a 78.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 12.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of Rush Enterprises in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th.

About Rush Enterprises

Rush Enterprises, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated retailer of commercial vehicles and related services in the United States and Canada. The company operates a network of commercial vehicle dealerships under the Rush Truck Centers name. Its Rush Truck Centers primarily sell commercial vehicles manufactured by Peterbilt, International, Hino, Ford, Isuzu, IC Bus, Blue Bird, and Dennis Eagle.