Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Grows Position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. $PAG

Key Points

• Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 73.4% during the first quarter, now owning 17,746 shares valued at approximately $2.55 million.
• Penske Automotive Group's recent quarterly earnings exceeded estimates, reporting $3.78 earnings per share, while revenues fell slightly short at $7.66 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase from $1.26 to $1.32, reflecting a 2.8% yield based on its annualized payout.

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Free Report) by 73.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,746 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,509 shares during the quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.'s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $2,555,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 0.3% in the 1st 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 during the period. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 7.0% during the 1st quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 863,529 shares of the company's stock valued at $124,331,000 after acquiring an additional 56,669 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 223,630 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,198,000 after acquiring an additional 7,276 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 155,560 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,714,000 after acquiring an additional 24,274 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 65.4% during the 1st quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 153,605 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,116,000 after acquiring an additional 60,734 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.08% of the company's stock.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Up 0.2%

PAG stock traded up $0.35 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $179.98. The stock had a trading volume of 9,827 shares, compared to its average volume of 235,755. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $134.05 and a 52-week high of $189.51. The firm has a market cap of $11.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.50 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a 50-day moving average of $179.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $166.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.21.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.56 by $0.22. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 3.13%.The firm had revenue of $7.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.98 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.61 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $1.32 dividend. This is an increase from Penske Automotive Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. Penske Automotive Group's payout ratio is currently 36.74%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Michelle Hulgrave sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.55, for a total value of $200,805.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,922 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,454,211.10. This represents a 5.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Lisa Ann Davis sold 1,604 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.74, for a total value of $289,906.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,529 shares in the company, valued at approximately $276,351.46. This represents a 51.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 51.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Penske Automotive Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $155.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $181.00.

Penske Automotive Group Profile

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.