Factorial Partners LLC Cuts Position in Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:ALSN)

Factorial Partners LLC reduced its position in shares of Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:ALSN - Free Report) by 48.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,500 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 20,300 shares during the period. Factorial Partners LLC's holdings in Allison Transmission were worth $2,323,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Williamson Legacy Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Allison Transmission in the fourth quarter worth $362,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Allison Transmission by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,751 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP grew its position in shares of Allison Transmission by 60.7% in the 4th quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 8,205 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $887,000 after buying an additional 3,100 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Allison Transmission in the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Allison Transmission by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 14,529 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $1,570,000 after acquiring an additional 612 shares during the last quarter. 96.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Allison Transmission Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE ALSN traded up $1.24 on Wednesday, hitting $97.64. 718,199 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 642,402. The company has a current ratio of 3.04, a quick ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The company has a market cap of $8.35 billion, a PE ratio of 11.75 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $110.05 and a 200-day moving average of $105.34. Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $71.49 and a 12 month high of $122.53.

Allison Transmission (NYSE:ALSN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The auto parts company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.11. Allison Transmission had a net margin of 22.67% and a return on equity of 47.95%. As a group, analysts forecast that Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. will post 9.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Allison Transmission Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This is a boost from Allison Transmission's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Allison Transmission's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.00%.

Allison Transmission declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 20th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the auto parts company to buy up to 57.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ALSN has been the topic of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Allison Transmission from $82.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Allison Transmission from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Allison Transmission from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Allison Transmission from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $100.75.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP John Coll sold 2,000 shares of Allison Transmission stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.40, for a total transaction of $216,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,420 shares in the company, valued at $695,928. This trade represents a 23.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Allison Transmission Profile

Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells fully automatic transmissions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles and medium- and heavy-tactical U.S. defense vehicles, and electrified propulsion systems worldwide. It provides commercial-duty on-highway, off-highway and defense fully automatic transmissions, and electric hybrid and fully electric systems.