Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) Raised to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on HOG. Griffin Securities set a $33.00 price target on shares of Harley-Davidson in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. UBS Group increased their target price on Harley-Davidson from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Citigroup lifted their target price on Harley-Davidson from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Loop Capital upgraded Harley-Davidson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, July 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.44.

Harley-Davidson Price Performance

HOG opened at $25.93 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.70 billion, a PE ratio of 15.91, a P/E/G ratio of 8.52 and a beta of 1.29. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $26.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.26. Harley-Davidson has a 1 year low of $17.09 and a 1 year high of $29.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.70.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. Harley-Davidson had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 6.28%. Harley-Davidson’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.88 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Harley-Davidson will post 0.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Harley-Davidson

In related news, CAO Gayle Littleton bought 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $26.38 per share, with a total value of $197,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $197,850. This trade represents a ? increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Jonathan R. Root sold 1,554 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.46, for a total transaction of $42,672.84. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 26,292 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $721,978.32. This represents a 5.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 57,500 shares of company stock worth $1,439,550 and have sold 4,662 shares worth $119,316. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Harley-Davidson

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Harley-Davidson in the second quarter valued at about $249,395,000. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. bought a new stake in Harley-Davidson in the 2nd quarter valued at $226,966,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Harley-Davidson in the 2nd quarter valued at $45,065,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Harley-Davidson by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,110,552 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,675,000 after purchasing an additional 163,762 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aegis Financial Corp purchased a new stake in Harley-Davidson in the 1st quarter worth $27,681,000. Institutional investors own 85.10% of the company’s stock.

Harley-Davidson Company Profile

Harley-Davidson, Inc is a Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based motorcycle company founded in 1903. Through its Harley-Davidson Motor Company business, it designs, manufactures and sells heavyweight motorcycles known for their touring, cruiser and performance-oriented models. The company also markets motorcycle parts, accessories, riding gear, apparel and branded merchandise.

Harley-Davidson sells its products through a network of independently owned dealerships and other distribution channels in North America and international markets, including Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America.