Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) Trading Down 5.8% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) were down 5.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $31.88 and last traded at $32.15. Approximately 2,122,965 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 23% from the average daily volume of 1,729,971 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.13.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HOG. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Baird R W downgraded shares of Harley-Davidson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Citigroup increased their price target on Harley-Davidson from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Harley-Davidson from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut Harley-Davidson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $44.00 to $40.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.00.

Harley-Davidson Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.89. The firm has a market cap of $4.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $1.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. Harley-Davidson had a return on equity of 20.33% and a net margin of 11.92%. Harley-Davidson’s revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.22 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Harley-Davidson, Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Harley-Davidson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $0.1725 per share. This represents a $0.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Harley-Davidson’s payout ratio is 15.33%.

Harley-Davidson announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, July 25th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 19.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Harley-Davidson

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in Harley-Davidson during the 1st quarter valued at $39,000. Diversified Trust Co raised its position in shares of Harley-Davidson by 17.2% in the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 100,374 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,390,000 after acquiring an additional 14,751 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Harley-Davidson by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 31,161 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,363,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Harley-Davidson by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 477,360 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,880,000 after purchasing an additional 11,918 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its stake in Harley-Davidson by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 159,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,961,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.10% of the company’s stock.

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.