Renaissance Technologies LLC Has $6.94 Million Stock Position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG)

Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG - Free Report) by 97.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,500 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 22,500 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned about 0.07% of Penske Automotive Group worth $6,936,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 44.8% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 262 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in Penske Automotive Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the fourth quarter worth about $76,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $94,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 749 shares of the company's stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.08% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $185.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Penske Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $170.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Claude H. Denker III sold 8,746 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.03, for a total value of $1,513,320.38. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 28,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,003,508.51. This represents a 23.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction of $237,683.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 51.70% of the company's stock.

Penske Automotive Group Trading Up 1.5 %

PAG traded up $2.33 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $157.32. 44,095 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 194,828. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.43 and a beta of 1.03. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $155.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $158.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.91. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a one year low of $134.05 and a one year high of $180.12.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.37 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $7.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.56 billion. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 18.05% and a net margin of 3.02%. As a group, analysts forecast that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This is an increase from Penske Automotive Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Penske Automotive Group's payout ratio is 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.