IFP Advisors Inc Boosts Position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. $PAG

IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 10.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,783 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the quarter. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $306,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PAG. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Penske Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group during the first quarter valued at about $42,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of 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 during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in shares of 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 during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 18.6% during the second quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. 77.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Penske Automotive Group

In related news, Director Lisa Ann Davis sold 1,604 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.74, for a total transaction of $289,906.96. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $276,351.46. This trade represents a 51.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Michelle Hulgrave sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.55, for a total value of $200,805.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,922 shares in the company, valued at $3,454,211.10. This trade represents a 5.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 51.70% of the company’s stock.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Performance

Shares of PAG stock opened at $171.09 on Thursday. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a one year low of $134.05 and a one year high of $189.51. The company’s 50-day moving average is $178.70 and its 200 day moving average is $169.13. The company has a market capitalization of $11.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.91 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.56 by $0.22. Penske Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 17.43%. The firm had revenue of $7.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.98 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.61 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $1.32 per share. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is a boost from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. Penske Automotive Group’s payout ratio is 36.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on PAG. Benchmark upped their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup upped their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $200.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.17.

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.