Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Tuesday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Bank of America lowered shares of Garmin from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on Garmin from $175.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a strong-buy rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Garmin from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Garmin from $140.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $156.83.

Garmin Price Performance

Shares of Garmin stock opened at $162.89 on Tuesday. Garmin has a 1-year low of $99.61 and a 1-year high of $171.64. The business has a 50-day moving average of $161.55 and a 200-day moving average of $143.01. The company has a market capitalization of $31.29 billion, a PE ratio of 22.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.98.

Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.42. Garmin had a return on equity of 17.26% and a net margin of 24.96%. The firm had revenue of $1.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.02 EPS. Garmin’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Garmin will post 5.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Garmin Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Garmin’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.31%.

Insider Activity at Garmin

In other Garmin news, CFO Douglas G. Boessen sold 2,350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.63, for a total value of $379,830.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 28,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,527,256.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Patrick Desbois sold 4,126 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.52, for a total value of $674,683.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 58,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,551,530.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Douglas G. Boessen sold 2,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.63, for a total transaction of $379,830.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,527,256.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 19.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Garmin

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its holdings in Garmin by 3.3% during the first quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 2,309 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $344,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its stake in shares of Garmin by 17.6% in the 1st quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 542 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Garmin by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,168 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in Garmin by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,518 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $452,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Insight Folios Inc grew its holdings in Garmin by 3.5% during the first quarter. Insight Folios Inc now owns 2,768 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $412,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. 73.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Garmin Company Profile

Garmin Ltd. designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes a range of wireless devices worldwide. Its Fitness segment offers running and multi-sport watches; cycling products; smartwatch devices; scales and monitors; and fitness accessories. This segment also provides Garmin Connect and Garmin Connect Mobile, which are web and mobile platforms where users can track and analyze their fitness, activities and workouts, and wellness data; and Connect IQ, an application development platform.