J.B. Hunt price target lowered to $173 from $191 at Loop Capital

Loop Capital analyst Rick Paterson lowered the firm’s price target on J.B. Hunt to $173 from $191 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares after its Q4 earnings miss, which was driven by "an unusual spike in Insurance and Claims" to $125M vs. an average over the prior four quarters of $62M. Management also provided an unusually wide range for 2023 capex, at $1.5B-$2B based on uncertainly with regard to asset needs and the demand picture, and while the commentary was highlighted by optimism on J.B. Hunt’s intermodal business this year, most sell-side models likely have intermodal volumes falling in 2023, the analyst tells investors in a research note.