Bank of New York Mellon Corp Acquires 13,210 Shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. $PAG

Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 3.5% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 388,977 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,210 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $58,160,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 41,177 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new position in Penske Automotive Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 950.3% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 4,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $733,000 after buying an additional 4,438 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 18.6% during the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keybank National Association OH grew its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 57.9% during the 1st quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 2,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $385,000 after buying an additional 944 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

Penske Automotive Group Price Performance

PAG stock opened at $215.71 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $14.18 billion, a PE ratio of 16.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.87. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $140.12 and a 12 month high of $219.09. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $179.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $166.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $3.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.14. Penske Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 15.13%. The company had revenue of $7.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.66 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a $1.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This is a positive change from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. This represents a $5.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $200.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group set a $190.00 price objective on Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $196.00.

Key Penske Automotive Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Penske Automotive Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Penske Automotive confirmed receipt of an unsolicited, preliminary, non-binding proposal from Penske Corporation and Mitsui to take the company private at $210 per share, a premium to the recent trading level and a signal that a buyout could be near. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company announced its 23rd consecutive quarterly dividend increase, lifting the payout to $1.44 per share from $1.42, which supports the stock’s income appeal and reflects continued cash generation. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several news reports highlighted the potential buyout as a roughly $3.8 billion to $4 billion deal, reinforcing speculation that shareholders could receive a takeover premium. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Citigroup downgraded PAG to “neutral” from “buy,” but raised its price target to $210, which is still close to the buyout talk and suggests limited near-term upside from current levels. Article Title

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

About Penske Automotive Group

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.