Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) Raised to Hold (C-) at Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Harley-Davidson was upgraded from a "sell (d+)" to a "hold (C-)" rating by Weiss Ratings, signaling a more favorable outlook for the stock.
• Multiple research firms have increased their price targets for Harley-Davidson shares, with a consensus target price now set at $31.00.
• Despite missing EPS estimates in its last earnings report, Harley-Davidson's revenue exceeded expectations, indicating some resilience in its financial performance.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Weiss Ratings from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on HOG. Griffin Securities set a $34.00 price target on Harley-Davidson in a report on Monday, August 25th. Zacks Research upgraded Harley-Davidson from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $31.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.00.

Harley-Davidson Stock Up 0.2%

Harley-Davidson stock opened at $26.94 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.37. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $27.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.37. The company has a market cap of $3.27 billion, a PE ratio of 13.96, a PEG ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.27. Harley-Davidson has a fifty-two week low of $20.45 and a fifty-two week high of $36.94.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.09 billion. Harley-Davidson had a return on equity of 7.43% and a net margin of 5.76%.The firm's quarterly revenue was down 19.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.63 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Harley-Davidson will post 3.44 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Harley-Davidson

In related news, Director Rafeh Masood bought 2,068 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $24.06 per share, for a total transaction of $49,756.08. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 4,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $113,202.30. This trade represents a 78.42% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HOG. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. boosted its holdings in Harley-Davidson by 61.8% in the second quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 5,517,795 shares of the company's stock valued at $130,220,000 after purchasing an additional 2,108,099 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new position in Harley-Davidson in the first quarter valued at $33,884,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Harley-Davidson in the second quarter valued at $21,607,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Harley-Davidson by 30.2% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,838,532 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,389,000 after purchasing an additional 426,808 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Harley-Davidson in the first quarter valued at $9,564,000. 85.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Harley-Davidson

Harley-Davidson, Inc manufactures and sells motorcycles in the United States and internationally. The company operates in three segments: Harley-Davidson Motor Company, LiveWire, and Harley-Davidson Financial Services. The Harley-Davidson Motor Company segment designs, manufactures, and sells motorcycles, including cruiser, trike, touring, standard, sportbike, adventure, and dual sport, as well as motorcycle parts, accessories, and apparel, as well as licenses its trademarks and related services.

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