GAMMA Investing LLC Acquires 182,888 Shares of Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R)

GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R - Free Report) by 20,298.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 183,789 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 182,888 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC owned about 0.44% of Ryder System worth $26,431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in R. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Ryder System by 16.5% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,068 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $952,000 after buying an additional 858 shares during the period. Phocas Financial Corp. lifted its stake in Ryder System by 35.4% in the 4th quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. now owns 46,545 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $7,301,000 after acquiring an additional 12,158 shares in the last quarter. Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. acquired a new position in Ryder System during the 4th quarter worth approximately $386,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of Ryder System during the 4th quarter worth approximately $16,317,000. Finally, Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ryder System in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $258,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.47% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on R. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ryder System from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Ryder System from $174.00 to $165.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Stephens decreased their price objective on Ryder System from $168.00 to $150.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.50.

Ryder System Stock Up 1.6%

R traded up $2.39 during trading on Friday, reaching $150.60. 169,459 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 325,928. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.75. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $144.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $153.33. Ryder System, Inc. has a twelve month low of $116.58 and a twelve month high of $171.78. The stock has a market cap of $6.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.58 and a beta of 0.96.

Ryder System (NYSE:R - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $2.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $3.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.17 billion. Ryder System had a net margin of 3.87% and a return on equity of 17.23%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.14 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Ryder System, Inc. will post 13.68 EPS for the current year.

Ryder System Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.81 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. Ryder System's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.25%.

Insider Transactions at Ryder System

In related news, Director E Follin Smith sold 1,243 shares of Ryder System stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.38, for a total transaction of $179,464.34. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 39,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,746,612.76. The trade was a 3.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert E. Sanchez sold 18,496 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.73, for a total transaction of $2,880,382.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 40,824 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,357,521.52. This represents a 31.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ryder System Company Profile

Ryder System, Inc operates as a logistics and transportation company worldwide. It operates through three segments: Fleet Management Solutions (FMS), Supply Chain Solutions (SCS), and Dedicated Transportation Solutions (DTS). The FMS segment offers full-service leasing and leasing with flexible maintenance options; commercial vehicle rental services; and contract or transactional maintenance services of trucks, tractors, and trailers; access to diesel fuel; and fuel planning and tax reporting, cards, and monitoring services, and centralized billing, as well as sells used vehicles through its retail sales centers and www.ryder.com/used-trucks website, as well as digital and technology support services.