State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Trims Stake in Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D trimmed its holdings in shares of Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) by 7.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,062 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,348 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Harley-Davidson were worth $2,006,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of HOG. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of Harley-Davidson by 46.8% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,872 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Harley-Davidson by 19.5% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 322 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Harley-Davidson by 19.0% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,008 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its stake in shares of Harley-Davidson by 191.3% in the second quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 3,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $133,000 after buying an additional 2,626 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in Harley-Davidson by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HOG. Baird R W lowered shares of Harley-Davidson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Harley-Davidson from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Harley-Davidson from $39.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.57.

Harley-Davidson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HOG opened at $32.90 on Friday. Harley-Davidson, Inc. has a 12 month low of $29.34 and a 12 month high of $44.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.46. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $35.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.16.

Harley-Davidson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a $0.1725 dividend. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Harley-Davidson’s payout ratio is currently 15.54%.

Harley-Davidson announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, July 25th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 19.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Harley-Davidson

In related news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 4,278 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.25, for a total transaction of $137,965.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,687 shares in the company, valued at $570,405.75. This represents a 19.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.87% 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.