Investors Purchase Large Volume of Harley-Davidson Put Options (NYSE:HOG)

Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Traders bought 6,374 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 48% compared to the average daily volume of 4,312 put options.

Institutional Trading of Harley-Davidson

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Harley-Davidson by 3,514.8% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 976 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 949 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Harley-Davidson by 172.0% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 876 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 554 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Harley-Davidson by 209.7% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,053 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 713 shares during the period. CX Institutional bought a new stake in Harley-Davidson in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Financial Harvest LLC bought a new stake in Harley-Davidson in the first quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors own 85.10% of the company's stock.

Harley-Davidson Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of HOG traded down $0.30 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $24.23. 458,393 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,933,855. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.96. Harley-Davidson has a 52 week low of $20.45 and a 52 week high of $39.93. The company has a market cap of $2.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.27, a PEG ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.30.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.27. Harley-Davidson had a net margin of 9.25% and a return on equity of 13.64%. The company had revenue of $315.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.72 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Harley-Davidson will post 3.44 EPS for the current year.

Harley-Davidson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Harley-Davidson's payout ratio is currently 26.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on HOG. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Harley-Davidson from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson from $35.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $30.17.

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.