Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at DA Davidson

DA Davidson upgraded shares of Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on HOG. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Harley-Davidson from $35.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $32.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Harley-Davidson from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Harley-Davidson from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.00.

Harley-Davidson Stock Down 9.5 %

Shares of NYSE:HOG opened at $21.43 on Tuesday. Harley-Davidson has a 12-month low of $20.45 and a 12-month high of $41.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.43, a PEG ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.28. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

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

Harley-Davidson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.18 dividend. This is a boost from Harley-Davidson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. Harley-Davidson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.62%.

Insider Activity

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Harley-Davidson

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. bought a new stake in Harley-Davidson in the 4th quarter valued at $50,368,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Harley-Davidson by 30.7% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,468,089 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,754,000 after purchasing an additional 1,285,225 shares in the last quarter. Brickwood Asset Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of Harley-Davidson in the fourth quarter worth about $27,783,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Harley-Davidson in the fourth quarter worth about $18,802,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Harley-Davidson by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,496,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,352,000 after buying an additional 435,200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.10% of the company’s stock.

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.