Gabelli Funds LLC Purchases 5,000 Shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. $PAG

Gabelli Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 84,000 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,000 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Penske Automotive Group were worth $13,296,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Navalign LLC bought a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 935.3% in the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 176 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the third quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Penske Automotive Group in the first quarter worth $42,000. Institutional investors own 77.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on PAG shares. Stephens raised their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings cut Penske Automotive Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Barclays decreased their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Penske Automotive Group in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Penske Automotive Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $184.86.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Performance

NYSE:PAG opened at $156.51 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $156.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $160.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.29 billion, a PE ratio of 11.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $140.12 and a twelve month high of $189.51.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $3.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $7.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.71 billion. Penske Automotive Group had a return on equity of 15.13% and a net margin of 2.85%.Penske Automotive Group’s revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.66 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th will be issued a dividend of $1.42 per share. This represents a $5.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. This is an increase from Penske Automotive Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 26th. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.79%.

Penske Automotive Group Company Profile

Penske Automotive Group, Inc (NYSE: PAG), headquartered in Bloomfield Township, Michigan, is an international transportation services company primarily focused on automotive and commercial truck dealerships. The company retails new and pre-owned vehicles across a broad spectrum of brands, while offering parts, maintenance, collision repair and reconditioning services. In addition, Penske provides financing and insurance products through its integrated finance and insurance operations, supporting both retail customers and commercial clients.

Formed in 1990 as United Auto Group and publicly traded since 1999, Penske Automotive Group has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to establish a network of dealerships and service centers across the United States and Europe.