Strs Ohio Invests $1.76 Million in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. $PAG

Key Points

• Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. with 12,246 shares valued at approximately $1.76 million in the 1st quarter, as reported in their Form 13F filing.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for Penske Automotive Group, with estimates now ranging from $175 to $205, reflecting increasing confidence in the company's stock performance.
• Penske Automotive Group recently increased its quarterly dividend to $1.32 per share, representing a yield of 3.0% and reflecting a positive trend in its financial stability.

Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 12,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,763,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 22,176 shares of the company's stock worth $3,381,000 after acquiring an additional 1,770 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 43.9% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 128,283 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,555,000 after buying an additional 39,113 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in Penske Automotive Group in the fourth quarter valued at $378,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 217.4% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 14,600 shares of the company's stock worth $2,226,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $105,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.08% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Penske Automotive Group

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

Penske Automotive Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PAG traded down $3.26 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $175.29. The stock had a trading volume of 79,378 shares, compared to its average volume of 234,446. The company has a market capitalization of $11.58 billion, a PE ratio of 12.25 and a beta of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $178.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $166.86. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $134.05 and a 1 year high of $189.51. 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 (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 3.13%.The company had revenue of $7.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.61 earnings per share. Penske Automotive Group's quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a $1.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. This is a boost from Penske Automotive Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. Penske Automotive Group's payout ratio is presently 36.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on PAG. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Benchmark increased their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Penske Automotive Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $155.00 to $175.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $182.50.

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.