Insider Selling: Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) EVP Sells $1,513,320.38 in Stock

Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) EVP Claude H. Denker III sold 8,746 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.03, for a total transaction of $1,513,320.38. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 28,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,003,508.51. The trade was a 23.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Performance

PAG opened at $163.54 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $161.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $160.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The company has a market capitalization of $10.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.89 and a beta of 1.20. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $142.32 and a 1-year high of $180.12.

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

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.22 per share. This is a positive change from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on PAG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Penske Automotive Group from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Benchmark assumed coverage on Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $172.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Penske Automotive Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Penske Automotive Group by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 806,860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $122,998,000 after purchasing an additional 13,106 shares in the last quarter. CSS LLC IL boosted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 42.9% during the 4th quarter. CSS LLC IL now owns 2,650 shares of the company’s stock worth $404,000 after acquiring an additional 796 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 65,784 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,028,000 after acquiring an additional 8,438 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 134,023 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,430,000 after acquiring an additional 5,669 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 19,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,994,000 after acquiring an additional 873 shares in the last quarter. 77.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.