Lazard Asset Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG)

Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) by 25.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 52,914 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 10,732 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Harley-Davidson were worth $1,594,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HOG. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Harley-Davidson by 172.0% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 876 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 554 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in Harley-Davidson by 237.9% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,301 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 916 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Harley-Davidson in the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in Harley-Davidson by 84.3% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in Harley-Davidson by 201.8% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,889 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 1,263 shares during the last quarter. 85.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HOG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup decreased their price target on Harley-Davidson from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group cut their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $35.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.17.

Harley-Davidson Stock Up 1.3%

Harley-Davidson stock opened at $24.71 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $3.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.30. Harley-Davidson, Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.45 and a 52 week high of $39.93. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $23.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $315.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion. Harley-Davidson had a return on equity of 13.64% and a net margin of 9.25%. Harley-Davidson’s revenue for the quarter was down 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Harley-Davidson, Inc. will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Harley-Davidson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Harley-Davidson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.87%.

Harley-Davidson Company Profile

Harley-Davidson, Inc manufactures and sells motorcycles in the United States and internationally. The company operates in three segments: Harley-Davidson Motor Company, LiveWire, and Harley-Davidson Financial Services. The Harley-Davidson Motor Company segment designs, manufactures, and sells motorcycles, including cruiser, trike, touring, standard, sportbike, adventure, and dual sport, as well as motorcycle parts, accessories, and apparel, as well as licenses its trademarks and related services.