GATX Co. (NYSE:GATX) Holdings Lowered by Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund trimmed its stake in shares of GATX Co. (NYSE:GATX) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 7,197 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in GATX were worth $1,115,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GATX. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of GATX by 91.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 163 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in GATX by 184.6% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 259 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new stake in GATX in the 4th quarter worth about $46,000. Mather Group LLC. lifted its stake in GATX by 36.0% in the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 423 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in GATX by 872.4% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 564 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. 93.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

GATX Stock Performance

Shares of GATX stock opened at $167.11 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37, a current ratio of 2.77 and a quick ratio of 3.41. GATX Co. has a fifty-two week low of $122.00 and a fifty-two week high of $168.89. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $159.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $149.73. The firm has a market cap of $5.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.51 and a beta of 0.99.

GATX (NYSE:GATX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.25. GATX had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 17.92%. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.74 EPS. Analysts predict that GATX Co. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

GATX Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.61 dividend. This is a positive change from GATX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. GATX’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on GATX in a research note on Monday, November 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $185.00 price objective for the company. Sidoti downgraded GATX from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $158.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Robert Zmudka sold 4,800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.83, for a total transaction of $786,384.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,227,578.19. This represents a 39.05 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Jeffery R. Young sold 297 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.63, for a total value of $48,895.11. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,212,006.06. This represents a 3.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

About GATX

GATX Corporation, together its subsidiaries, operates as railcar leasing company in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe, and India. It operates through three segments: Rail North America, Rail International, and Portfolio Management. The company leases tank and freight railcars, and locomotives for petroleum, chemical, food/agriculture, and transportation industries.