Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Penske Automotive Group has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy”, with 6 buy ratings and 4 hold ratings. The average 1-year price target is about $182.63.
• The company beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $3.05 EPS versus $2.91 expected and $7.86 billion in revenue versus $7.71 billion expected. However, revenue still declined 1.1% year over year.
• Penske recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.42 per share, or $5.68 annually, for a 3.1% yield. The payout ratio is currently 42.39%.

Shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the ten analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $182.6250.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PAG. UBS Group assumed coverage on Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $167.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered Penske Automotive Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Citigroup increased their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $193.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE PAG opened at $181.30 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market cap of $11.92 billion, a PE ratio of 13.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.87. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $164.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $161.86. Penske Automotive Group has a 12-month low of $140.12 and a 12-month high of $189.51.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $3.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $7.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.71 billion. Penske Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.85% and a return on equity of 15.13%. The business's revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.66 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Penske Automotive Group will post 13.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th were issued a $1.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $5.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is a boost from Penske Automotive Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Penske Automotive Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.39%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Greg C. Smith sold 1,488 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.02, for a total value of $238,109.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Michelle Hulgrave sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.80, for a total value of $257,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 17,596 shares in the company, valued at $3,022,992.80. This represents a 7.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 52.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Penske Automotive Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 15.1% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 441 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 4.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 463,784 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,345,000 after purchasing an additional 19,850 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 30.0% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 24,384 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,646,000 after purchasing an additional 5,627 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 25.4% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,115 shares of the company's stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SummitTX Capital L.P. boosted its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 177.5% during the first quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. now owns 11,164 shares of the company's stock worth $1,669,000 after purchasing an additional 7,141 shares during the last quarter. 77.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Penske Automotive Group Company Profile

Penske Automotive Group, Inc NYSE: PAG, headquartered in Bloomfield Township, Michigan, is an international transportation services company primarily focused on automotive and commercial truck dealerships. The company retails new and pre-owned vehicles across a broad spectrum of brands, while offering parts, maintenance, collision repair and reconditioning services. In addition, Penske provides financing and insurance products through its integrated finance and insurance operations, supporting both retail customers and commercial clients.

Formed in 1990 as United Auto Group and publicly traded since 1999, Penske Automotive Group has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish a network of dealerships and service centers across the United States and Europe.

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