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

Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 569,100 shares, a decrease of 26.5% from the December 15th total of 774,300 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 280,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on R shares. StockNews.com downgraded Ryder System from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Ryder System from $160.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Ryder System from $148.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Four investment 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, Ryder System currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $147.43.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Thomas M. Havens sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.44, for a total transaction of $629,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,228,149.76. This represents a 16.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ryder System

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of R. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its stake in Ryder System by 212.4% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 425,614 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $62,055,000 after purchasing an additional 289,388 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in 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. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Ryder System by 1,915.0% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 103,935 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,875,000 after purchasing an additional 98,777 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in Ryder System during the 4th quarter worth about $12,242,000. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Ryder System by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,915,544 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $237,298,000 after buying an additional 62,815 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.47% of the company’s stock.

Ryder System Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE R traded up $4.20 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $163.58. The company had a trading volume of 360,822 shares, compared to its average volume of 252,725. Ryder System has a 1-year low of $106.62 and a 1-year high of $171.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $161.78 and its 200-day moving average is $146.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.30 and a beta of 1.31.

Ryder System (NYSE:R) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.29 billion. Ryder System had a net margin of 3.83% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.58 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Ryder System will post 12.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.