Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. Buys New Position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG)

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 263 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PAG. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 296.3% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,422,000 after purchasing an additional 11,150 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Penske Automotive Group by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,282 shares of the company’s stock valued at $371,000 after buying an additional 330 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Penske Automotive Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $231,000. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 63,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,321,000 after acquiring an additional 2,475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 176.1% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 13,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,166,000 after acquiring an additional 8,504 shares during the period. 77.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John Barr sold 1,529 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.45, for a total transaction of $237,683.05. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Claude H. Denker III sold 8,746 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 28,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,003,508.51. This trade represents a 23.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 51.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on PAG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Penske Automotive Group from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Benchmark assumed coverage on Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Penske Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $172.50.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Performance

Shares of PAG stock opened at $154.31 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market cap of $10.30 billion, a PE ratio of 11.22 and a beta of 1.24. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $163.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $159.64. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $142.32 and a 52 week high of $180.12.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last issued 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 company had revenue of $7.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.56 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $1.22 dividend. This is an increase 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 yield of 3.16%. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.49%.

About Penske Automotive Group

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.