Gabelli Funds LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG)

Gabelli Funds LLC lessened its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 86,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $13,110,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Penske Automotive Group by 44.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the 4th quarter valued at $76,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Penske Automotive Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $94,000. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its position in Penske Automotive Group by 33.5% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE PAG opened at $149.82 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $157.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 1.03. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $134.05 and a 52 week high of $180.12. 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 (NYSE:PAG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $3.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.37 by $0.17. Penske Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.02% and a return on equity of 18.05%. The business had revenue of $7.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.56 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 EPS for the current fiscal 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 is a boost from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Penske Automotive Group

In other Penske Automotive Group news, Director John Barr sold 1,529 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.45, for a total transaction of $237,683.05. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Claude H. Denker III sold 8,746 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly 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 Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PAG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Penske Automotive Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $166.25.

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.