UPDATE: Stifel Nicolaus Raises PT to $23 on Marten Transport

Stifel Nicolaus maintains its Buy rating on Marten Transport MRTN and raises its price target to $23 from $21 a share as the company beats 4Q estimates on truckload operations strength. Stifel Nicolaus comments, "Marten Transport reported record 4Q11 EPS of $0.35, above Street consensus as well as the high estimate on the Street, due to a combination of both increased revenue and a favorable decline in the quarterly operating ratio, net of fuel surcharge, to just below 90%. The Truckload segment and Intermodal Logistics segment drove the revenue increase while improvement in the operating ratio was due to a decline in purchased transportation and maintenance costs as a percentage of sales, mainly exhibited in the Truckload segment." MRTN closed at $19.12 a share on Tuesday.