Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Purchases New Position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $883,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 113.6% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Penske Automotive Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 100.0% in the third quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 91.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 346 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 155.3% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 457 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. 77.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PAG shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $107.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $163.20.

Penske Automotive Group Price Performance

PAG stock opened at $153.45 on Friday. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $133.72 and a twelve month high of $180.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $152.79. The company has a market capitalization of $10.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.80 and a beta of 1.19.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $3.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.66 by ($0.21). Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 24.19% and a net margin of 3.57%. The company had revenue of $7.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.21 EPS. Penske Automotive Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.8 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Penske Automotive Group

In other news, Director John Barr sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total transaction of $246,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 716 shares in the company, valued at $110,299.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Penske Automotive Group news, Director Greg C. Smith sold 1,604 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.38, for a total value of $239,605.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 51,001 shares in the company, valued at $7,618,529.38. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director John Barr sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.05, for a total value of $246,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $110,299.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 51.70% of the company’s stock.

Penske Automotive Group Company 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.