Investors Purchase Large Volume of Harley-Davidson Put Options (NYSE:HOG)

Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) saw unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Traders bought 6,995 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 86% compared to the average volume of 3,769 put options.

Harley-Davidson Stock Up 2.7%

Shares of Harley-Davidson stock opened at $24.06 on Tuesday. Harley-Davidson has a 12-month low of $20.45 and a 12-month high of $35.21. The company has a market cap of $2.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.47, a PEG ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 1.39. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $26.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $3.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $1.72. Harley-Davidson had a net margin of 5.76% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The business had revenue of $1.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Harley-Davidson will post 3.44 EPS for the current year.

Harley-Davidson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 10th were issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 10th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Harley-Davidson’s dividend payout ratio is 17.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HOG. Griffin Securities set a $34.00 price objective on Harley-Davidson in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Harley-Davidson from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Harley-Davidson from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. DA Davidson dropped their price target on Harley-Davidson from $34.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson from $25.00 to $21.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Harley-Davidson has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.86.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Harley-Davidson

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Harley-Davidson by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 62,273 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,572,000 after buying an additional 1,469 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Harley-Davidson by 177.6% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 143,053 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,612,000 after purchasing an additional 91,520 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH bought a new position in shares of Harley-Davidson during the first quarter valued at approximately $624,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lifted its holdings in shares of Harley-Davidson by 35.6% during the first quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 33,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $856,000 after purchasing an additional 8,900 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Harley-Davidson by 209.7% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 713 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.10% of the company’s stock.

About Harley-Davidson

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.