Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) in a report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm issued an overweight rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on HOG. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Harley-Davidson from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Harley-Davidson from $29.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. DA Davidson increased their price target on Harley-Davidson from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Harley-Davidson from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Harley-Davidson from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $47.14.

Harley-Davidson Stock Performance

Shares of Harley-Davidson stock opened at $39.73 on Tuesday. Harley-Davidson has a 52 week low of $25.43 and a 52 week high of $44.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.24, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.43. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $39.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $34.88.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.04 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $791.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $875.29 million. Harley-Davidson had a net margin of 12.11% and a return on equity of 22.00%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.28 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Harley-Davidson will post 4.19 EPS for the current year.

Harley-Davidson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 20th. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th were paid a $0.1725 dividend. This represents a $0.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 1st. This is a boost from Harley-Davidson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Harley-Davidson’s dividend payout ratio is 14.32%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Harley-Davidson

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Harley-Davidson by 95.0% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 788 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Harley-Davidson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Harley-Davidson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Harley-Davidson by 66.7% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,057 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares during the period. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new position in shares of Harley-Davidson in the first quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 85.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.