Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 569,100 shares, a decline of 26.5% from the December 15th total of 774,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 280,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Currently, 1.4% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on R. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Ryder System from $160.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com cut Ryder System from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Ryder System from $148.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $147.43.

Insider Activity at Ryder System

In other Ryder System news, insider Thomas M. Havens sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.44, for a total value of $629,760.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 20,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,228,149.76. This trade represents a 16.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ryder System

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in R. Earnest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ryder System by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,915,544 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $237,298,000 after buying an additional 62,815 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Ryder System by 1.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,722,222 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $213,345,000 after purchasing an additional 31,550 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of Ryder System by 4.7% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 847,581 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $104,997,000 after purchasing an additional 37,991 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ryder System by 56.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 781,519 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $113,945,000 after purchasing an additional 281,052 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ryder System by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 722,689 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $105,397,000 after purchasing an additional 5,860 shares in the last quarter. 87.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ryder System Stock Up 1.2 %

R stock opened at $165.48 on Friday. Ryder System has a one year low of $106.62 and a one year high of $171.78. The firm has a market cap of $7.00 billion, a PE ratio of 15.48 and a beta of 1.31. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $161.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $146.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Ryder System (NYSE:R) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The transportation company reported $3.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.39 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.29 billion. Ryder System had a return on equity of 16.78% and a net margin of 3.83%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.58 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Ryder System will post 12 EPS for the current year.

About Ryder System

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.