Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the eight research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $33.57.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on HOG shares. DA Davidson decreased their target price on Harley-Davidson from $39.00 to $31.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com upgraded Harley-Davidson from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Harley-Davidson from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 31st. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

Harley-Davidson Stock Performance

NYSE:HOG opened at $24.61 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $3.07 billion, a PE ratio of 7.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.49. Harley-Davidson has a fifty-two week low of $23.81 and a fifty-two week high of $44.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.40. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $27.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $31.62.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported ($0.93) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.65) by ($0.28). Harley-Davidson had a net margin of 9.25% and a return on equity of 13.64%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.18 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Harley-Davidson will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Harley-Davidson Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.18 dividend. This is a boost from Harley-Davidson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Harley-Davidson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.62%.

Insider Transactions at Harley-Davidson

In related news, insider Luke Christopher Mansfield sold 3,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.96, for a total transaction of $88,264.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $611,487.80. This trade represents a 12.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HOG. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Harley-Davidson by 22,680.0% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,182,864 shares of the company’s stock worth $161,166,000 after purchasing an additional 4,164,502 shares during the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. purchased a new position in Harley-Davidson in the fourth quarter worth about $50,368,000. Brickwood Asset Management LLP purchased a new position in Harley-Davidson in the fourth quarter worth about $27,783,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Harley-Davidson in the fourth quarter worth about $18,802,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Harley-Davidson by 14.2% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,496,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,352,000 after purchasing an additional 435,200 shares during the last quarter. 85.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Harley-Davidson

Harley-Davidson, Inc manufactures and sells motorcycles in the United States and internationally. The company operates in three segments: Harley-Davidson Motor Company, LiveWire, and Harley-Davidson Financial Services. The Harley-Davidson Motor Company segment designs, manufactures, and sells motorcycles, including cruiser, trike, touring, standard, sportbike, adventure, and dual sport, as well as motorcycle parts, accessories, and apparel, as well as licenses its trademarks and related services.