Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) Stake Lifted by Renaissance Technologies LLC

Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Penske Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:PAG) by 97.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 45,500 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,500 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Penske Automotive Group worth $6,936,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 44.8% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in Penske Automotive Group during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Penske Automotive Group in the fourth quarter worth about $76,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Penske Automotive Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $94,000. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Penske Automotive Group by 33.5% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. 77.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Penske Automotive Group news, EVP Claude H. Denker III sold 8,746 shares of the company’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 transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $237,683.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 51.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Penske Automotive Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Penske Automotive Group from $165.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Penske Automotive Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $166.25.

Penske Automotive Group Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:PAG opened at $151.74 on Friday. Penske Automotive Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $134.05 and a 52 week high of $180.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $10.13 billion, a PE ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $156.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $158.18.

Penske Automotive Group (NYSE:PAG) last released its 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. 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.56 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Penske Automotive Group, Inc. will post 13.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Penske Automotive Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. 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 3.22%. Penske Automotive Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.