Honda Motor (NYSE:HMC) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Honda Motor from “hold” to “buy,” following Zacks Research’s upgrade to “strong buy.” MarketBeat lists the stock’s consensus rating as “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $34.00.
• Honda shares opened at $32.23, up from a 12-month low of $23.25 but below the $34.16 high. The company reported quarterly revenue of $37.27 billion and earnings per share of $2.14.
• Institutional investors increased their positions, including BlackRock, Bank of America and Donald Smith & Co.; hedge funds and other institutions collectively own 5.32% of Honda’s stock.

Honda Motor (NYSE:HMC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Honda Motor from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Honda Motor in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of Honda Motor in a report on Friday. They set a "neutral" rating and a $34.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Honda Motor currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $34.00.

Honda Motor Stock Down 0.9%

Honda Motor stock opened at $32.23 on Friday. Honda Motor has a twelve month low of $23.25 and a twelve month high of $34.16. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $30.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $27.62. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $50.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -46.04 and a beta of 0.44.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Honda Motor

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HMC. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $25,303,000 after purchasing an additional 8,414,952 shares during the period. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. purchased a new position in Honda Motor in the second quarter valued at about $109,593,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Honda Motor by 3.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,834,932 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,917,000 after buying an additional 99,301 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Honda Motor by 35.2% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,655,980 shares of the company's stock worth $72,004,000 after acquiring an additional 691,165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Equity Investment Corp boosted its stake in shares of Honda Motor by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 2,302,204 shares of the company's stock worth $67,869,000 after acquiring an additional 27,965 shares in the last quarter. 5.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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