Rafferty Asset Management LLC Sells 283 Shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 8.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,966 shares of the company’s stock after selling 283 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $452,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of PAG. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new stake in Penske Automotive Group during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $76,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 42.4% in the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 33.5% in the 4th 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. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Up 0.3%

PAG stock opened at $162.69 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $153.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $159.00. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $134.05 and a fifty-two week high of $180.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $10.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.83 and a beta of 0.90.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.12. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 18.05% and a net margin of 3.02%. The business had revenue of $7.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.21 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be paid a dividend of $1.26 per share. This is an increase from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 27th. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio is 35.49%.

Penske Automotive Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, May 14th that authorizes the company to buyback $250.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Penske Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $167.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director John Barr sold 1,529 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.45, for a total transaction of $237,683.05. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 51.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Penske Automotive Group

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.