Head-To-Head Review: Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) & Titan Machinery (NASDAQ:TITN)

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) and Titan Machinery (NASDAQ:TITN) are both retail/wholesale companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, risk, earnings, dividends, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Penske Automotive Group and Titan Machinery”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Penske Automotive Group	$30.46 billion	0.38	$918.90 million	$14.20	12.33
Titan Machinery	$2.70 billion	0.16	-$36.91 million	($2.63)	-7.25

Penske Automotive Group has higher revenue and earnings than Titan Machinery. Titan Machinery is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Penske Automotive Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk & Volatility

Penske Automotive Group has a beta of 0.92, suggesting that its share price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Titan Machinery has a beta of 1.35, suggesting that its share price is 35% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Penske Automotive Group and Titan Machinery’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Penske Automotive Group	3.10%	17.80%	5.51%
Titan Machinery	-2.23%	-8.22%	-2.64%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

77.1% of Penske Automotive Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.4% of Titan Machinery shares are owned by institutional investors. 52.4% of Penske Automotive Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 10.8% of Titan Machinery shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Penske Automotive Group and Titan Machinery, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Penske Automotive Group	1	1	4	0	2.50
Titan Machinery	0	2	3	2	3.00

Penske Automotive Group presently has a consensus price target of $172.00, indicating a potential downside of 1.78%. Titan Machinery has a consensus price target of $21.00, indicating a potential upside of 10.11%. Given Titan Machinery’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Titan Machinery is more favorable than Penske Automotive Group.

Summary

Penske Automotive Group beats Titan Machinery on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. The company is also involved in the sale of new and used motor vehicles, maintenance and repair services, sale and placement of third-party finance and insurance products, third-party extended service and maintenance contracts, replacement and aftermarket automotive products, collision repair services, and wholesale of parts. In addition, it operates a heavy and medium duty truck dealership, which offers Freightliner and Western Star branded trucks, as well as offers a range of used trucks. Further, it imports and distributes Western Star heavy-duty trucks, MAN heavy and medium duty trucks and buses, and Dennis Eagle refuse collection vehicles with associated parts. Additionally, the company distributes diesel and gas engines, and power systems. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

About Titan Machinery

Titan Machinery Inc. owns and operates a network of full service agricultural and construction equipment stores in the United States, Europe, and Australia. It operates through four segments: Agriculture, Construction, Europe, and Australia. The company sells new and used equipment, including agricultural and construction equipment manufactured under the CNH Industrial family of brands, as well as equipment from various other manufacturers. Its agricultural equipment includes machinery and attachments for use in the production of food, fiber, feed grain, feed stock, and renewable energy; and home and garden applications, as well as maintenance of commercial, residential, and government properties. The company’s construction equipment comprises heavy construction machinery, light industrial machinery for commercial and residential construction, and road and highway construction machinery. It also sells maintenance and replacement parts. In addition, the company offers repair and maintenance services that include warranty repairs, off-site and on-site repair services, scheduling off-season maintenance services, and notifying customers of periodic service requirements; and training programs to customers. Further, it rents equipment; and provides ancillary equipment support services, such as equipment transportation, global positioning system signal subscriptions and other precision farming products, farm data management products, and CNH Industrial finance and insurance products. The company operates in Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, Washington, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, the United States; Bulgaria, Germany, Romania, and Ukraine, Europe; and New South Wales, South Australia, and Victoria, Australia. Titan Machinery Inc. was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in West Fargo, North Dakota.