Penske Automotive Group, Inc. $PAG Stake Boosted by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 34.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,005 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,525 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $864,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,004,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $288,656,000 after purchasing an additional 5,641 shares in the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 806,860 shares of the company’s stock worth $122,998,000 after purchasing an additional 13,106 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 223,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,198,000 after purchasing an additional 7,276 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 155,560 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,714,000 after purchasing an additional 24,274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 65.4% during the 1st quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 153,605 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,116,000 after acquiring an additional 60,734 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Penske Automotive Group

In related news, CEO Roger S. Penske sold 77,357 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.37, for a total value of $12,483,099.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 140,042 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,598,577.54. The trade was a 35.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Shane M. Spradlin sold 3,158 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.10, for a total value of $527,701.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 36,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,040,999.20. This trade represents a 8.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 84,748 shares of company stock worth $13,748,660. 51.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Penske Automotive Group Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE PAG opened at $184.35 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $12.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $177.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $165.49. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $134.05 and a 52 week high of $189.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.56 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $7.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.98 billion. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 3.13%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.61 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 14th that authorizes the company to repurchase $250.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $1.32 dividend. This is an increase from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on PAG. Citigroup lifted their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Penske Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $155.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.00.

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.