J.B. Hunt 2Q results forecast to show dip
J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. will report second-quarter earnings results Monday after markets close, the company said.
Wall Street analysts expect the Lowell transporter to report earnings per share of $1.35 for the quarter, down from $1.37 last year. Stephens Inc. predicts earnings of $1.33 per share, research shows.
"I don't think weakness in the quarter will come as a major surprise to investors," said Stephens analyst Justin Long.
Flooding in the Midwest and a major "pull-forward" of freight shipments ahead of tariff deadlines have stalled business and are partially to blame, Long said, adding that softer-than-expected demand this Spring will be a larger culprit for potentially weak earnings.
Results for the three months that ended June 30 will be discussed Monday in a conference call scheduled for 4-5 p.m., J.B. Hunt said. The call can be accessed by dialing (877) 369-5230 and using access code 0620659##.
A recording of the call will be available Monday evening on J.B. Hunt's investor website, the carrier said.
Company shares rose $5.18, or 5.9%, to close Friday at $92.94. They have been as high as $129.98 in the past 52 weeks and as low as $83.64.
-- Nathan Owens
Pursuer of Caesars to sell two casinos
LAS VEGAS -- Casino company Eldorado Resorts Inc. said Friday that it is selling two of its 26 properties and will use the proceeds to help it buy Caesars Entertainment Corp.
Eldorado of Reno, Nev., announced Thursday that Twin River Worldwide Holdings Inc. of Rhode Island will buy Lady Luck Casino in Vicksburg, Miss., and the Isle of Capri property in Kansas City, Mo., for a combined $230 million.
The cash sales are expected to close early next year.
Union Gaming analyst John DeCree told the Las Vegas Review-Journal the deal with Twin River could help fund Eldorado's $17.3 billion plan to buy Caesars and its more than 30 casinos in the U.S.
The purchase of Las Vegas' Caesars, announced June 24, followed pressure from activist investor Carl Icahn.
The deal must be approved by gambling regulators and shareholders.
-- The Associated Press
State index up 7.08 as 12 stocks climb
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed Friday at 417.53, up 7.08.
Twelve of the 14 stocks rose, topped by J.B. Hunt Transport at 5.9% and ArcBest at 4.71%.
The individual gains were buoyed by across-the-board increases in the major indexes, with the Dow Jones industrial average above the 27,000 mark for the second-consecutive day.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business on 07/13/2019