Wall Street Zen Downgrades Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) to Sell

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday, Wall Street Zen reports.

HOG has been the subject of a number of other reports. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Harley-Davidson from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Harley-Davidson from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Harley-Davidson from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Harley-Davidson from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $27.44.

Harley-Davidson Stock Down 2.9%

Harley-Davidson stock opened at $24.71 on Friday. Harley-Davidson has a 1-year low of $17.09 and a 1-year high of $29.22. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $26.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.16, a PEG ratio of 8.36 and a beta of 1.29.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.10. Harley-Davidson had a return on equity of 6.28% and a net margin of 4.78%.The company had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.88 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Harley-Davidson will post 0.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Artie Starrs acquired 10,000 shares of Harley-Davidson stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $25.89 per share, for a total transaction of $258,900.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 25,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $647,250. This represents a 66.67% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Gayle Littleton acquired 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $26.38 per share, with a total value of $197,850.00. Following the acquisition, the chief accounting officer owned 7,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $197,850. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders purchased 57,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,439,550 and sold 4,662 shares valued at $119,316. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Harley-Davidson

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Harley-Davidson during the second quarter worth $29,000. Pinnacle Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Harley-Davidson in the second quarter valued at $36,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Harley-Davidson by 858.2% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 1,459 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Harley-Davidson in the second quarter worth about $59,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Harley-Davidson by 1,758.9% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 2,779 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.