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

Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $167.00.

PAG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Penske Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Monday, May 5th.

Insider Activity

In other Penske Automotive Group news, Director John Barr sold 1,529 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.45, for a total value of $237,683.05. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Roger S. Penske sold 77,357 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 140,042 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,598,577.54. This trade represents a 35.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 80,415 shares of company stock worth $12,967,930. Corporate insiders own 51.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Penske Automotive Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake 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 buying an additional 1,777 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 28.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,221 shares of the company's stock worth $198,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,651 shares of the company's stock worth $404,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 54,063 shares of the company's stock worth $8,241,000 after buying an additional 2,446 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 33.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 749 shares of the company's stock worth $114,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. 77.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Penske Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PAG traded up $2.21 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $164.88. 293,230 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 199,271. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.20. Penske Automotive Group has a 1 year low of $134.05 and a 1 year high of $180.12. The company has a market capitalization of $10.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.99 and a beta of 0.91. The company's 50-day moving average is $156.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $159.22.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.12. Penske Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.02% and a return on equity of 18.05%. The company had revenue of $7.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.21 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Penske Automotive Group will post 13.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, May 14th that allows the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were paid a dividend of $1.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. This is an increase from Penske Automotive Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. Penske Automotive Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.49%.

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.