BNP Paribas Exane Initiates Coverage on Honda Motor (NYSE:HMC)

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage of Honda Motor with a “neutral” rating and a $34 price target, implying approximately 4.4% upside from the reported $32.55 share price.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive: Honda has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with two Strong Buy, two Hold, and one Sell recommendation; the average price target is also $34.
• Honda reported quarterly revenue of $37.27 billion and EPS of $2.14, while institutional investors own 5.32% of the company and several large funds recently increased their positions.

Research analysts at BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on shares of Honda Motor (NYSE:HMC - Get Free Report) in a report issued on Friday, Briefing.com reports. The firm set a "neutral" rating and a $34.00 price target on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane's price objective indicates a potential upside of 4.44% from the stock's current price.

HMC has been the subject of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Honda Motor in a report on Monday, August 31st. Zacks Research upgraded Honda Motor from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $34.00.

Honda Motor Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of HMC opened at $32.55 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.81 billion, a P/E ratio of -46.51 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm's 50-day moving average is $30.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.59. Honda Motor has a twelve month low of $23.25 and a twelve month high of $34.16.

Honda Motor (NYSE:HMC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 1st. The company reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Honda Motor had a negative return on equity of 1.30% and a negative net margin of 0.73%.The firm had revenue of $37.27 billion during the quarter. On average, research analysts predict that Honda Motor will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Honda Motor

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its position in Honda Motor by 5,004.4% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 8,583,102 shares of the company's stock worth $25,303,000 after buying an additional 8,414,952 shares during the period. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. bought a new position in shares of Honda Motor in the second quarter valued at approximately $109,593,000. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in shares of Honda Motor by 35.2% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,655,980 shares of the company's stock worth $72,004,000 after buying an additional 691,165 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in Honda Motor by 1,421.0% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 416,848 shares of the company's stock worth $12,289,000 after acquiring an additional 389,442 shares during the period. Finally, XY Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Honda Motor in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $7,032,000. Institutional investors own 5.32% of the company's stock.

Honda Motor Company Profile

Honda Motor Co, Ltd. is a Japanese mobility and manufacturing company founded in 1948 by Soichiro Honda and Takeo Fujisawa. The company is best known for developing and manufacturing automobiles and motorcycles, and it has built a global presence through research, production and sales operations in Japan and international markets.

Honda's automotive business includes passenger cars, light trucks, hybrid-electric vehicles and battery-electric vehicles under the Honda and Acura brands. The company also produces motorcycles and related power products, including engines, generators, pumps, lawn and garden equipment, and other products used by consumers and businesses.

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