Nuveen LLC Acquires Shares of 69,481 Penske Automotive Group, Inc. $PAG

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired a new position in Penske Automotive Group, purchasing 69,481 shares valued at around $10 million, amounting to approximately 0.11% of the company.
• Penske Automotive Group recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.32 per share, representing a dividend yield of 2.8% and a boost from the previous $1.26 per share.
• Several brokerage firms have upgraded their ratings for Penske Automotive Group, with JPMorgan Chase raising its price target from $155 to $175, and current average price target now standing at $181.

Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 69,481 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,004,000. Nuveen LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Penske Automotive Group at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 0.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,004,832 shares of the company's stock valued at $288,656,000 after buying an additional 5,641 shares in the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 806,860 shares of the company's stock valued at $122,998,000 after buying an additional 13,106 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 606,709 shares of the company's stock valued at $92,487,000 after buying an additional 20,506 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 3.4% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 223,630 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,198,000 after buying an additional 7,276 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 155,560 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,714,000 after buying an additional 24,274 shares in the last quarter. 77.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Penske Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of PAG stock traded down $3.24 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $185.09. The stock had a trading volume of 33,352 shares, compared to its average volume of 238,426. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $176.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $134.05 and a 12 month high of $189.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.22 billion, a PE ratio of 12.89 and a beta of 0.87.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.56 by $0.22. Penske Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 17.43%. The company had revenue of $7.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.98 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.61 earnings per share. Penske Automotive Group's revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 EPS for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, May 14th that permits the company to repurchase $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This is a boost from Penske Automotive Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Penske Automotive Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.74%.

Insider Activity

In other Penske Automotive Group news, CEO Roger S. Penske sold 77,357 shares of Penske Automotive Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total transaction of $12,483,099.09. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 140,042 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,598,577.54. This trade represents a 35.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lisa Ann Davis sold 1,604 shares of Penske Automotive Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.74, for a total transaction of $289,906.96. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,529 shares in the company, valued at $276,351.46. This trade represents a 51.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 84,748 shares of company stock valued at $13,748,660. Insiders own 51.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on PAG. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Penske Automotive Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $155.00 to $175.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock 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.