Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eight brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $32.00.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Harley-Davidson from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $35.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Harley-Davidson from $32.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 4th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Harley-Davidson from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th.

Insider Activity at Harley-Davidson

In related news, insider Luke Christopher Mansfield sold 3,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $611,487.80. This trade represents a 12.61 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.93% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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Institutional Trading of Harley-Davidson

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HOG. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Harley-Davidson by 3,514.8% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 976 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 949 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Harley-Davidson by 172.0% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 876 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 554 shares during the period. CX Institutional purchased a new stake in shares of Harley-Davidson during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Harley-Davidson by 153.6% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,306 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 791 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Harley-Davidson by 237.9% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,301 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 916 shares in the last quarter. 85.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Harley-Davidson Stock Performance

NYSE:HOG traded up $0.58 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $22.19. The company had a trading volume of 171,149 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,505,256. Harley-Davidson has a 52 week low of $20.45 and a 52 week high of $40.14. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $24.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $29.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market cap of $2.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.69, a PEG ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 1.28.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 9.25% and a return on equity of 13.64%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.18 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Harley-Davidson will post 3.44 EPS 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 given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. This is an increase from Harley-Davidson's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Harley-Davidson's payout ratio is currently 21.62%.

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.