Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) Upgraded to “Overweight” at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) from an underweight rating to an overweight rating in a research note released on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. Morgan Stanley currently has $180.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $115.00.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on PAG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set an equal weight rating and a $161.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $175.40.

Penske Automotive Group Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:PAG opened at $162.87 on Wednesday. Penske Automotive Group has a 52 week low of $137.95 and a 52 week high of $179.72. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $161.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $155.80. The firm has a market cap of $10.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.33 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.39 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $7.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.59 billion. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 19.82% and a net margin of 3.05%. Penske Automotive Group’s quarterly revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.41 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Penske Automotive Group will post 13.83 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, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a dividend of $1.07 per share. This represents a $4.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.96. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.76%.

Insider Transactions at Penske Automotive Group

In other news, Director John Barr sold 716 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.71, for a total value of $122,228.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 51.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Penske Automotive Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Gabelli Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 6.2% in the first quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 85,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,850,000 after purchasing an additional 5,000 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 15.4% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 30,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,935,000 after purchasing an additional 4,057 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Penske Automotive Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,516,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,742,000. Finally, Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP increased its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 321.8% in the fourth quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP now owns 26,675 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,282,000 after purchasing an additional 20,351 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

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.