Arizona State Retirement System Lowers Position in GATX Corporation (NYSE:GATX)

Arizona State Retirement System trimmed its position in shares of GATX Corporation (NYSE:GATX) by 1.3% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 9,685 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 131 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in GATX were worth $1,504,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of GATX by 0.9% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 82,389 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $12,793,000 after buying an additional 767 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in GATX by 3.9% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,356 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $521,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its stake in GATX by 29.4% in the first quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 8,796 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,366,000 after buying an additional 1,997 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in GATX by 6.1% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 2,523 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $392,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in GATX by 337.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,294 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $356,000 after buying an additional 1,770 shares during the last quarter. 93.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Susquehanna dropped their target price on GATX from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of GATX in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd.

GATX Stock Down 1.3%

GATX stock opened at $154.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.43, a quick ratio of 4.14 and a current ratio of 4.14. GATX Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $127.70 and a fifty-two week high of $168.89. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $153.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.52 and a beta of 1.16.

GATX (NYSE:GATX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.06. GATX had a return on equity of 12.00% and a net margin of 17.73%. The business had revenue of $421.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $417.06 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.01 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that GATX Corporation will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GATX Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. GATX’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.93%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Jennifer Mcmanus sold 1,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.92, for a total value of $278,856.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 3,468 shares in the company, valued at $537,262.56. This trade represents a 34.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Paul F. Titterton sold 18,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.66, for a total value of $2,929,542.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 10,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,639,916.88. This trade represents a 64.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.17% of the company’s stock.

GATX Profile

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.