Wealthfront Advisers LLC Purchases Shares of 2,002,265 Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R)

Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE:R) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 2,002,265 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $314,075,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Ryder System during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Ryder System during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Ryder System during the third quarter worth about $34,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Ryder System in the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in Ryder System by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 344 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.47% of the company’s stock.

Ryder System Stock Performance

Shares of R opened at $147.79 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $160.22 and a 200 day moving average of $154.90. Ryder System, Inc. has a 12 month low of $106.88 and a 12 month high of $171.78. The company has a market capitalization of $6.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.33 and a beta of 1.23. 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) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The transportation company reported $3.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.39 by $0.06. Ryder System had a return on equity of 17.23% and a net margin of 3.87%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ryder System, Inc. will post 13.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Ryder System Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $0.81 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $3.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. Ryder System’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on R shares. StockNews.com cut Ryder System from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on 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. decreased their price target on Ryder System from $176.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $157.00.

Ryder System 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.