KBC Group NV Sells 401 Shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. $PAG

KBC Group NV reduced its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 40.1% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 598 shares of the company’s stock after selling 401 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $103,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ethic Inc. increased its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 5.3% during the second quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 2,110 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Penske Automotive Group in the 1st quarter worth $247,000. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in Penske Automotive Group during the 1st quarter worth about $471,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 147,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,233,000 after purchasing an additional 1,891 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,004,832 shares of the company’s stock valued at $288,656,000 after purchasing an additional 5,641 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PAG shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $200.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. 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 report on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $180.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $195.00 target price for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.86.

Penske Automotive Group Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of Penske Automotive Group stock opened at $160.83 on Friday. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $134.05 and a 12-month high of $189.51. The stock has a market cap of $10.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The business’s 50 day moving average is $166.83 and its 200-day moving average is $171.28.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.48 by ($0.25). Penske Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 16.84%. The firm had revenue of $7.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.39 earnings per share. Penske Automotive Group’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.38 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $5.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. This is a boost from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.32. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.85%.

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.