Greenbrier Companies (NYSE:GBX) Stock Price Up 8.9% – Here’s What Happened

Greenbrier Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:GBX) shares traded up 8.9% during mid-day trading on Monday. The company traded as high as $42.30 and last traded at $42.4760. 277,021 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average daily volume of 443,225 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.01.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on GBX. Wall Street Zen lowered Greenbrier Companies from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 24th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Greenbrier Companies from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Greenbrier Companies from $42.00 to $38.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Greenbrier Companies from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Strong Sell” and an average target price of $42.67.

Greenbrier Companies Stock Up 7.9%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 2.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $41.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of 16.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 1.53.

Greenbrier Companies (NYSE:GBX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The transportation company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.80 by ($0.41). Greenbrier Companies had a return on equity of 4.85% and a net margin of 3.21%. The company had revenue of $591.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $605.10 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.26 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 22.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Greenbrier Companies, Inc. will post 3.30 earnings per share for the current year.

Greenbrier Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. Greenbrier Companies’s payout ratio is 54.84%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Greenbrier Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GBX. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Greenbrier Companies by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,979,546 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $104,222,000 after purchasing an additional 13,153 shares during the last quarter. Atlas FRM LLC bought a new position in Greenbrier Companies in the 2nd quarter worth about $38,599,688. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. purchased a new stake in Greenbrier Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,987,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in Greenbrier Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at about $18,324,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Greenbrier Companies by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 150,096 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $7,903,000 after purchasing an additional 2,564 shares during the last quarter. 95.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Greenbrier Companies

Greenbrier Companies, Inc is a transportation equipment company that designs, manufactures and supplies freight railcars and related services. Its products include covered hopper cars, tank cars, gondolas, boxcars, intermodal equipment and railcars used to transport automobiles and other specialized cargo.

The company also provides railcar leasing and management services, maintenance, refurbishment, wheel services and parts. Through its manufacturing and service operations, Greenbrier supports railroads, leasing companies, shippers and other participants in the North American freight transportation industry.

Founded in 1974 and headquartered in Lake Oswego, Oregon, Greenbrier has expanded its operations beyond the United States, with manufacturing and service activities serving customers in North America and international markets.