Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

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Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $181.00.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Penske Automotive Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Up 3.4%

PAG traded up $6.1150 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $187.1050. 237,765 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 240,553. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company's fifty day moving average price is $175.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $164.78. The company has a market cap of $12.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.02 and a beta of 0.87. Penske Automotive Group has a one year low of $134.05 and a one year high of $188.43.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $3.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $7.98 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.61 earnings per share. Penske Automotive Group's quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Penske Automotive Group will post 13.86 EPS for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.32 dividend. This is a boost from Penske Automotive Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Penske Automotive Group's payout ratio is currently 36.74%.

Penske Automotive Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $250.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Penske Automotive Group

In related news, 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 transaction, the director owned 1,529 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $276,351.46. This represents a 51.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Roger S. Penske sold 77,357 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 $22,598,577.54. This trade represents a 35.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 84,748 shares of company stock worth $13,748,660. 51.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PAG. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 9.6% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 3,367 shares of the company's stock worth $485,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 10,253 shares of the company's stock worth $1,563,000 after purchasing an additional 1,777 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 15.8% in the first quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 12,006 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,729,000 after buying an additional 1,639 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 33.4% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 999 shares of the company's stock valued at $144,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group during the first quarter worth about $648,000. Institutional investors own 77.08% of the company's stock.

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.