Short Interest in GATX Co. (NYSE:GATX) Increases By 5.1%

GATX Co. (NYSE:GATX - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,430,000 shares, a growth of 5.1% from the October 15th total of 1,360,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 140,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 10.2 days. Currently, 4.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Farm Mutual Automobile I. State acquired 8,984 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $133.65 per share, with a total value of $1,200,711.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 3,312,294 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $442,688,093.10. The trade was a 0.27 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GATX. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of GATX by 2.2% in the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 3,118,084 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $412,710,000 after acquiring an additional 68,243 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in GATX by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,294,895 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $171,509,000 after purchasing an additional 7,585 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in GATX by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 869,643 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $115,106,000 after purchasing an additional 40,924 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in GATX by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 849,603 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $112,550,000 after buying an additional 12,571 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of GATX by 16.9% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 831,625 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $110,074,000 after buying an additional 120,149 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.14% of the company's stock.

GATX Stock Performance

GATX traded up $0.80 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $152.33. The company had a trading volume of 156,068 shares, compared to its average volume of 151,228. The business has a 50-day moving average of $138.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $136.76. The company has a quick ratio of 3.41, a current ratio of 3.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.41. GATX has a 1 year low of $106.92 and a 1 year high of $156.03. The company has a market cap of $5.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.36 and a beta of 0.95.

GATX (NYSE:GATX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The transportation company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.54. GATX had a net margin of 17.76% and a return on equity of 11.98%. The company had revenue of $405.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $391.65 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.44 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that GATX will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

GATX Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. GATX's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on GATX in a research note on Monday. They set a "buy" rating and a $185.00 price target for the company. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of GATX from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st.

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.