UPDATE: Wunderlich Securities Upgrades J.B. Hunt Transport Services on Intermodal Growth at a TL Price

In a report published Wednesday, Wunderlich Securities analyst Nicholas J. Bender upgraded the rating on

from Hold to Buy, and raised the price target from $83.00 to $89.00. In the report, Wunderlich Securities noted, “We are transferring coverage of JB Hunt (JBHT) with a Buy rating and $89 price target. The company faced 2013 headwinds related to decelerating intermodal volume, contract start-up costs, a choppy brokerage market, and an underperforming truckload segment (JBT). However, operating margin looks poised to expand for both the intermodal (JBI) and dedicated (DCS) segments in FY14, and a December 2013 management shake-up at JBT should allow the company to benefit from improving TL fundamentals. We believe JBHT's current share price, at just 18.8x our FY15 EPS estimate of $3.85, undervalues the potential of the integrated, multi-modal operating model, and thus we are transferring coverage with a Buy rating and $89 price target.” J.B. Hunt Transport Services closed on Tuesday at $72.31.