Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $137.86.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Ryder System from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Ryder System from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Vertical Research upgraded Ryder System from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $125.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Stephens started coverage on Ryder System in a report on Monday, July 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Ryder System in a report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock.

Ryder System Stock Up 3.1 %

Shares of NYSE R opened at $145.24 on Friday. Ryder System has a 12-month low of $91.31 and a 12-month high of $145.61. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $131.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $122.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.37 billion, a PE ratio of 18.91 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09.

Ryder System (NYSE:R) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The transportation company reported $3.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $3.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.24 billion. Ryder System had a return on equity of 17.22% and a net margin of 4.06%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.61 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Ryder System will post 12.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ryder System Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $0.81 per share. This represents a $3.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 19th. This is a positive change from Ryder System’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Ryder System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Francisco Jr. Lopez sold 12,730 shares of Ryder System stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.32, for a total value of $1,773,543.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 47,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,656,570.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ryder System

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in R. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Ryder System during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Ryder System in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ryder System during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ryder System in the 2nd quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ryder System during the 4th quarter worth $68,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.47% of the company’s stock.

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.