Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $10.58 Million Holdings in Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) by 32.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 274,691 shares of the company’s stock after selling 132,807 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Harley-Davidson were worth $10,584,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Harley-Davidson by 19.0% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,008 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in Harley-Davidson by 19.5% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its position in Harley-Davidson by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 51,975 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,273,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 597 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Harley-Davidson by 23.5% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,659 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after acquiring an additional 697 shares during the period. 85.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Harley-Davidson Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of HOG stock opened at $32.90 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.41. Harley-Davidson, Inc. has a twelve month low of $29.34 and a twelve month high of $44.16. The company has a market capitalization of $4.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.41, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.46.

Harley-Davidson Announces Dividend

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

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on HOG. Robert W. Baird lowered Harley-Davidson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $44.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Citigroup cut their price target on Harley-Davidson from $39.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Baird R W downgraded Harley-Davidson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded Harley-Davidson from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on Harley-Davidson from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Harley-Davidson presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $42.57.

Insider Activity at Harley-Davidson

In related news, Director Maryrose Sylvester sold 4,278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.25, for a total value of $137,965.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $570,405.75. This trade represents a 19.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.87% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.