Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the seven analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $47.14.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on HOG shares. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Harley-Davidson from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Harley-Davidson from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on Harley-Davidson from $29.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Harley-Davidson from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th.

Harley-Davidson Trading Down 15.7 %

Shares of HOG stock opened at $33.23 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $39.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.90. Harley-Davidson has a 12-month low of $25.43 and a 12-month high of $44.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $791.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $875.29 million. Harley-Davidson had a return on equity of 22.00% and a net margin of 12.11%. The company’s revenue was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.28 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Harley-Davidson will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Harley-Davidson Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.1725 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.08%. This is a positive change from Harley-Davidson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Harley-Davidson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.32%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Harley-Davidson

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of Harley-Davidson by 30.3% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Harley-Davidson by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 564,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,674,000 after buying an additional 11,670 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its position in Harley-Davidson by 132.3% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 54,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,810,000 after buying an additional 31,180 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Harley-Davidson by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,461,895 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,330,000 after buying an additional 12,332 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. raised its position in Harley-Davidson by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 1,288,649 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,603,000 after buying an additional 33,760 shares during the last quarter. 85.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.