Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) Shares Sold by LSV Asset Management

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management has reduced its holdings in Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) by 2.8%, owning approximately 1.30% of the company after selling 24,600 shares.
• Penske Automotive Group declared a quarterly dividend of $1.32 per share, up from its previous dividend of $1.26, translating to a 3.1% dividend yield.
• The company's stock recently opened at $168.26, with a reported return on equity of 17.43% and net margin of 3.13% in its latest earnings report.

LSV Asset Management decreased its stake in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Free Report) by 2.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 861,287 shares of the company's stock after selling 24,600 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management owned about 1.30% of Penske Automotive Group worth $124,008,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PAG. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Penske Automotive Group by 24.2% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,833 shares of the company's stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its position in Penske Automotive Group by 1,772.7% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 1,236 shares of the company's stock valued at $178,000 after buying an additional 1,170 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Penske Automotive Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,102,000. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 49,324 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,102,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 10,351 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,490,000 after purchasing an additional 713 shares during the last quarter. 77.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Down 0.3%

Penske Automotive Group stock traded down $0.50 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $177.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,293 shares, compared to its average volume of 242,802. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $134.05 and a fifty-two week high of $186.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market cap of $11.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.38 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $172.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $163.42.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $3.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $7.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.98 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.61 earnings per share. Penske Automotive Group's quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 14th that permits the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 2.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.32 dividend. This is a boost from Penske Automotive Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Penske Automotive Group's payout ratio is presently 35.07%.

Insider Activity at Penske Automotive Group

In related news, CEO Roger S. Penske sold 77,357 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total value of $12,483,099.09. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 140,042 shares in the company, valued at $22,598,577.54. The trade was a 35.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Greg C. Smith sold 1,529 shares of Penske Automotive Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.64, for a total value of $247,147.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 82,044 shares of company stock worth $13,257,948 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 51.70% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PAG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America upped their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Penske Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup increased their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Penske Automotive Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $155.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $179.00.

About Penske Automotive Group

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.