Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) Coverage Initiated at Bank of America

Analysts at Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 14.69% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Monday. Benchmark increased their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $180.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $184.43.

Penske Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PAG opened at $170.03 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $163.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $171.38. Penske Automotive Group has a fifty-two week low of $134.05 and a fifty-two week high of $189.51. The company has a market capitalization of $11.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.97 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.25). Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 16.84% and a net margin of 3.08%.The company had revenue of $7.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.39 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Penske Automotive Group will post 13.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Penske Automotive Group news, CFO Michelle Hulgrave sold 2,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.17, for a total value of $336,357.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 16,822 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,694,379.74. This trade represents a 11.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 51.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,004,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $288,656,000 after purchasing an additional 5,641 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 48.9% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,391,281 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,958,000 after acquiring an additional 456,611 shares in the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. raised its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 3.1% during the second quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 890,356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $152,972,000 after purchasing an additional 26,827 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 726,490 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,043,000 after acquiring an additional 44,749 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 28.4% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 380,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,751,000 after purchasing an additional 84,045 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

About Penske Automotive Group

Penske Automotive Group, Inc, a diversified transportation services company, operates automotive and commercial truck dealerships worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Retail Automotive, Retail Commercial Truck, Other, and Non-Automotive Investments. It operates dealerships under franchise agreements with various automotive manufacturers and distributors.