Analysts Set Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) Target Price at $167.00

Shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $167.00.

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

Insider Transactions at Penske Automotive Group

In other news, Director John Barr sold 1,529 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 140,042 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,598,577.54. The trade was a 35.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 80,415 shares of company stock valued at $12,967,930 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 51.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Penske Automotive Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PAG. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new stake in Penske Automotive Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Penske Automotive Group in the first quarter worth about $42,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 421.5% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 339 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 51.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 398 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 353.0% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 453 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 353 shares in the last quarter. 77.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Performance

NYSE:PAG traded up $2.21 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $164.88. 293,230 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 234,887. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.99 and a beta of 0.91. Penske Automotive Group has a 1 year low of $134.05 and a 1 year high of $180.12. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $156.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $159.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

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

Penske Automotive Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 2.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

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

Penske Automotive Group Company Profile

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.