Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Raises Position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,995 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 330 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $761,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,605,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,878 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Inceptionr LLC lifted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 92.1% in the fourth quarter. Inceptionr LLC now owns 9,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,415,000 after purchasing an additional 4,449 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,018,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,765,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Penske Automotive Group Stock Performance

NYSE:PAG opened at $149.40 on Friday. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $142.32 and a 1-year high of $180.12. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $163.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $159.76. The firm has a market cap of $9.97 billion, a PE ratio of 10.87 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.20.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $3.54 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $7.56 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 EPS for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $1.22 dividend. This is a positive change from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. Penske Automotive Group’s payout ratio is currently 35.49%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John Barr sold 1,529 shares of Penske Automotive Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.45, for a total value of $237,683.05. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Claude H. Denker III sold 8,746 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 28,917 shares in the company, valued at $5,003,508.51. This trade represents a 23.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate 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.