Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) Shares Acquired by Burgundy Asset Management Ltd.

Key Points

• Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. by 7% in the first quarter, owning a total of 863,529 shares valued at $124.3 million.
• CEO Roger S. Penske sold 77,357 shares of the company, reducing his ownership by 35.58%, while insiders collectively sold over 82,000 shares worth approximately $13.3 million in the last three months.
• Penske Automotive Group announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.32 per share, reflecting a yield of 2.9% and demonstrating confidence in the company's financial stability.

Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Free Report) by 7.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 863,529 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 56,669 shares during the quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. owned 1.31% of Penske Automotive Group worth $124,331,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PAG. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 421.5% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 339 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 51.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 398 shares of the company's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Penske Automotive Group by 31.0% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 528 shares of the company's stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 42.4% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 531 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the fourth quarter worth $105,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.08% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 140,042 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,598,577.54. The trade was a 35.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Shane M. Spradlin sold 3,158 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.10, for a total value of $527,701.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 36,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,040,999.20. This represents a 8.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 82,044 shares of company stock valued at $13,257,948 in the last three months. 51.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Penske Automotive Group Price Performance

PAG opened at $180.34 on Friday. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $174.36 and a 200 day moving average of $164.24. The stock has a market cap of $11.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.55 and a beta of 0.87. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $134.05 and a 52-week high of $186.55.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) last issued 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. The firm had revenue of $7.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.98 billion. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 3.13%. The company's revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.61 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 EPS for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 14th that allows the company to repurchase $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.32 per share. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Penske Automotive Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. Penske Automotive Group's payout ratio is presently 35.07%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PAG. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $190.00 target price (up from $180.00) on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Penske Automotive Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the company from $155.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Penske Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Penske Automotive Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $181.00.

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.

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