Short Interest in Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) Increases By 5.7%

Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE:HOG) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 10,370,000 shares, an increase of 5.7% from the September 15th total of 9,810,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,820,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.7 days. Approximately 8.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Baird R W downgraded Harley-Davidson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Robert W. Baird downgraded Harley-Davidson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $44.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Citigroup lifted 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 decreased their price target on Harley-Davidson from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Harley-Davidson from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.00.

Harley-Davidson Stock Performance

NYSE HOG opened at $36.65 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Harley-Davidson has a fifty-two week low of $25.43 and a fifty-two week high of $44.16. The business has a fifty day moving average of $36.77 and a 200-day moving average of $36.15. The stock has a market cap of $4.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.44.

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

Harley-Davidson announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, July 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 19.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Harley-Davidson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $0.1725 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. Harley-Davidson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Harley-Davidson

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of HOG. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Harley-Davidson in the first quarter valued at about $39,000. American National Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Harley-Davidson in the first quarter valued at about $52,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of Harley-Davidson by 46.8% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 597 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Harley-Davidson by 19.5% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Harley-Davidson by 19.0% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,008 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.10% of the company’s stock.

About Harley-Davidson

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.