J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ: JBHT) and P.A.M. Transportation Services (NASDAQ:PTSI) are both transportation companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, profitabiliy, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation and risk.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares J.B. Hunt Transport Services and P.A.M. Transportation Services’ revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | EBITDA | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| J.B. Hunt Transport Services | $6.77 billion | 1.49 | $1.06 billion | $3.82 | 24.13 |
| P.A.M. Transportation Services | $435.80 million | 0.25 | $50.79 million | $1.25 | 13.52 |
J.B. Hunt Transport Services has higher revenue and earnings than P.A.M. Transportation Services. P.A.M. Transportation Services is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than J.B. Hunt Transport Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk & Volatility
J.B. Hunt Transport Services has a beta of 0.94, suggesting that its share price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, P.A.M. Transportation Services has a beta of 1.01, suggesting that its share price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for J.B. Hunt Transport Services and P.A.M. Transportation Services, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| J.B. Hunt Transport Services | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 2.50 |
| P.A.M. Transportation Services | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
J.B. Hunt Transport Services presently has a consensus target price of $98.71, indicating a potential upside of 7.10%. P.A.M. Transportation Services has a consensus target price of $17.00, indicating a potential upside of 0.59%. Given J.B. Hunt Transport Services’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe J.B. Hunt Transport Services is more favorable than P.A.M. Transportation Services.
Profitability
This table compares J.B. Hunt Transport Services and P.A.M. Transportation Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| J.B. Hunt Transport Services | 6.32% | 30.00% | 11.08% |
| P.A.M. Transportation Services | 1.85% | 8.57% | 2.15% |
Insider & Institutional Ownership
73.1% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 28.0% of P.A.M. Transportation Services shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.3% of J.B. Hunt Transport Services shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 62.0% of P.A.M. Transportation Services shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Dividends
J.B. Hunt Transport Services pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. P.A.M. Transportation Services does not pay a dividend. J.B. Hunt Transport Services pays out 24.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. P.A.M. Transportation Services has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years.
Summary
J.B. Hunt Transport Services beats P.A.M. Transportation Services on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.
J.B. Hunt Transport Services Company Profile
J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. is a surface transportation, delivery, and logistics company in North America. The Company segments include Intermodal (JBI), Dedicated Contract Services (DCS), Integrated Capacity Solutions (ICS) and Truck (JBT). The Company, through its subsidiaries, provides transportation and delivery services to a range of customers and consumers throughout the continental United States, Canada and Mexico. The JBI segment draws on the intermodal services of rail carriers for the underlying linehaul movement of its equipment between rail ramps. Its DCS segment focuses on private fleet conversion and creation in replenishment, specialized equipment and final-mile delivery services. Its ICS segment provides traditional freight brokerage and transportation logistics solutions to customers through relationships with third-party carriers and integration. Its JBT segment offers full-load, dry-van freight, utilizing tractors operating over roads and highways.
P.A.M. Transportation Services Company Profile
P.A.M. Transportation Services, Inc. is a holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, operates as a truckload transportation and logistics company. It operates in the motor carrier segment. It operates as a truckload dry van carrier transporting general commodities throughout the continental United States, as well as in certain Canadian provinces. It provides transportation services in Mexico under agreements with Mexican carriers. Its operations are classified into truckload services, or brokerage and logistics services. Truckload services include transportation services, in which it utilizes company owned trucks or independent operator owned trucks for the pickup and delivery of freight. The brokerage and logistics services consist of services, such as transportation scheduling, routing, mode selection, transloading and other services related to the transportation of freight, which may or may not involve the use of company owned or independent operator owned equipment.
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