Proficio Capital Partners LLC Makes New $3.77 Million Investment in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 24,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,765,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Penske Automotive Group by 296.3% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,422,000 after purchasing an additional 11,150 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 3.7% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 16.9% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,282 shares of the company’s stock valued at $371,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the period. Finally, Islay Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the third quarter worth $1,221,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

Penske Automotive Group Trading Up 1.3 %

Penske Automotive Group stock opened at $149.92 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $163.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $160.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $142.32 and a 12 month high of $180.12. The stock has a market cap of $10.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 1.24.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.37 by $0.17. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 18.05% and a net margin of 3.02%. The business had revenue of $7.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.56 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 EPS for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.26%. This is an increase from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.49%.

Insider Activity

In other Penske Automotive Group news, Director John Barr sold 1,529 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.45, for a total value of $237,683.05. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claude H. Denker III sold 8,746 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.03, for a total value of $1,513,320.38. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 28,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,003,508.51. This represents a 23.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 51.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PAG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Benchmark assumed coverage on Penske Automotive Group in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Penske Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Penske Automotive Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $172.50.

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.