Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG)

Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 0.3% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 49,324 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $7,102,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 4,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $648,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,447 shares of the company’s stock valued at $208,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 35,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,424,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 31.0% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacific Global Investment Management Co. raised its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Pacific Global Investment Management Co. now owns 11,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,721,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. 77.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Penske Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $160.00 to $155.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Penske Automotive Group news, Director Greg C. Smith sold 1,529 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.64, for a total value of $247,147.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Shane M. Spradlin sold 3,158 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.10, for a total transaction of $527,701.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 36,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,040,999.20. This trade represents a 8.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 82,044 shares of company stock valued at $13,257,948 in the last quarter. Insiders own 52.40% of the company’s stock.

Penske Automotive Group Price Performance

PAG stock opened at $175.01 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.90. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $134.05 and a 52 week high of $186.33. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $170.93 and its 200 day moving average is $162.73. The firm has a market cap of $11.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.32 and a beta of 0.91.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $3.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.12. Penske Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.10% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The company had revenue of $7.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.21 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $1.32 dividend. This represents a $5.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.49%.

Penske Automotive Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, May 14th that permits the company to repurchase $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 2.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Penske Automotive Group 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.