Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) Position Boosted by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 0.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 43,032 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of Penske Automotive Group worth $6,196,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Penske Automotive Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $22,049,000. Moran Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Penske Automotive Group by 65.4% during the first quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 153,605 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,116,000 after purchasing an additional 60,734 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Penske Automotive Group by 21,771.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 57,304 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,251,000 after purchasing an additional 57,042 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 43.9% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 128,283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,555,000 after purchasing an additional 39,113 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Penske Automotive Group by 17.4% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 259,513 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,560,000 after purchasing an additional 38,388 shares during the last quarter. 77.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Performance

Shares of PAG opened at $175.40 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.61 billion, a PE ratio of 12.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a one year low of $134.05 and a one year high of $186.33. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $170.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $161.72.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $3.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.12. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 3.10%. The business had revenue of $7.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 14th that permits the company to repurchase $250.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 2.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were paid a $1.26 dividend. This is an increase from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Greg C. Smith sold 1,529 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.64, for a total transaction of $247,147.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Roger S. Penske sold 77,357 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total transaction of $12,483,099.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 140,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,598,577.54. The trade was a 35.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 82,044 shares of company stock valued at $13,257,948. 51.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PAG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Penske Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $172.00.

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.