Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC Acquires New Stake in Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R)

Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC bought a new stake in Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 258,035 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $40,475,000. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC owned 0.61% of Ryder System as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Ryder System in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Ryder System in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Ryder System during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Ryder System during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ryder System by 36.5% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.47% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director E Follin Smith sold 1,243 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.38, for a total value of $179,464.34. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 39,802 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,746,612.76. This trade represents a 3.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ryder System Stock Performance

Shares of R stock traded down $2.32 during trading on Thursday, reaching $157.56. 290,374 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 317,005. The firm's 50-day moving average is $141.68 and its 200 day moving average is $154.05. The company has a market capitalization of $6.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.21 and a beta of 0.94. Ryder System, Inc. has a 1 year low of $116.58 and a 1 year high of $171.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.14.

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

Ryder System Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. Ryder System's payout ratio is 28.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.