By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG – Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Investors bought 5,076 put options on the company. This is an increase of 51% compared to the average volume of 3,360 put options.
Harley-Davidson Stock Performance
Shares of Harley-Davidson stock opened at $21.43 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $25.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $29.78. 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 1.19.
Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported ($0.93) EPS 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 quarter last year, the business earned $0.18 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Harley-Davidson will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current year.
Harley-Davidson Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This is an increase from Harley-Davidson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.36%. Harley-Davidson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.62%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Harley-Davidson
In related news, insider Luke Christopher Mansfield sold 3,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.96, for a total transaction of $88,264.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 23,555 shares in the company, valued at approximately $611,487.80. The trade was a 12.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Trading of Harley-Davidson
A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HOG. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Harley-Davidson by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,835,139 shares of the company’s stock valued at $205,940,000 after acquiring an additional 332,928 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management boosted its holdings in Harley-Davidson by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 5,498,635 shares of the company’s stock valued at $165,674,000 after purchasing an additional 19,453 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Harley-Davidson by 30.7% in the 4th 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. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Harley-Davidson by 14.2% during the 4th 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 period. Finally, Donald Smith & CO. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Harley-Davidson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $50,368,000. 85.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup decreased their price target on Harley-Davidson from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Bank of America lowered their price target on Harley-Davidson from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Harley-Davidson from $35.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Harley-Davidson from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Harley-Davidson has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $32.00.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on HOG
Harley-Davidson Company Profile
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.
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