Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. Decreases Stake in GATX Co. (NYSE:GATX)

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lowered its holdings in GATX Co. (NYSE:GATX) by 9.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 264,885 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 26,481 shares during the quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. owned 0.75% of GATX worth $41,047,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in GATX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of GATX by 19.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 92,861 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $12,299,000 after acquiring an additional 15,092 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of GATX by 2.2% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 167,651 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $22,206,000 after purchasing an additional 3,580 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in GATX by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,294,895 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $171,509,000 after buying an additional 7,585 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in GATX by 3.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 474,729 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $62,878,000 after buying an additional 17,255 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of GATX by 1.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 849,603 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $112,550,000 after acquiring an additional 12,571 shares in the last quarter. 93.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

GATX Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GATX opened at $165.52 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.88 billion, a PE ratio of 21.30 and a beta of 0.99. GATX Co. has a 12 month low of $122.00 and a 12 month high of $168.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37, a current ratio of 2.77 and a quick ratio of 3.41. The business has a 50-day moving average of $158.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $146.73.

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

GATX Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.61 per share. This is a positive change from GATX’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. GATX’s payout ratio is presently 29.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on GATX. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of GATX in a research report on Monday, November 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $185.00 price objective for the company. Sidoti lowered GATX from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $158.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of GATX from $122.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

GATX Company 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.