Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $188.00.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on PAG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $200.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup increased their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $193.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Performance

Penske Automotive Group stock opened at $191.21 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.22. Penske Automotive Group has a 1-year low of $140.12 and a 1-year high of $191.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.87. The company’s 50-day moving average is $173.56 and its 200 day moving average is $163.87.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $3.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $7.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.71 billion. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 15.13% and a net margin of 2.85%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.66 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Penske Automotive Group will post 13.46 EPS for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th were issued a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 26th. This is a positive change from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.39%.

Insider Activity

In other Penske Automotive Group news, Director Greg C. Smith sold 1,488 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.02, for a total value of $238,109.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Michelle Hulgrave sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.80, for a total transaction of $257,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 17,596 shares in the company, valued at $3,022,992.80. This represents a 7.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 52.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Penske Automotive Group

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of PAG. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 102.5% in the second quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,426 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,150,000 after purchasing an additional 3,253 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Penske Automotive Group by 26.5% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 429 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 179.0% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 279 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. CX Institutional lifted its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 260.3% in the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 7,436 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,331,000 after buying an additional 5,372 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 15.1% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 441 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

Penske Automotive Group Company Profile

Penske Automotive Group, Inc (NYSE: PAG), headquartered in Bloomfield Township, Michigan, is an international transportation services company primarily focused on automotive and commercial truck dealerships. The company retails new and pre-owned vehicles across a broad spectrum of brands, while offering parts, maintenance, collision repair and reconditioning services. In addition, Penske provides financing and insurance products through its integrated finance and insurance operations, supporting both retail customers and commercial clients.

Formed in 1990 as United Auto Group and publicly traded since 1999, Penske Automotive Group has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish a network of dealerships and service centers across the United States and Europe.