StockNews.com Upgrades Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) to Buy

Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Tuesday.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $175.00 target price (up previously from $165.00) on shares of Garmin in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Garmin from $139.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Garmin from $120.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Barrington Research lifted their target price on Garmin from $119.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $142.33.

Garmin Stock Performance

Shares of GRMN stock opened at $142.80 on Tuesday. Garmin has a fifty-two week low of $94.89 and a fifty-two week high of $149.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.28, a PEG ratio of 4.62 and a beta of 0.98. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $141.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $127.21.

Garmin (NYSE:GRMN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.32. Garmin had a return on equity of 16.60% and a net margin of 24.67%. The business had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.35 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Garmin will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Garmin

In other news, CEO Clifton A. Pemble sold 1,622 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.19, for a total transaction of $217,656.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 159,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,379,016.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Clifton A. Pemble sold 1,622 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.19, for a total transaction of $217,656.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 159,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,379,016.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Susan Lyman sold 2,587 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.18, for a total value of $349,710.66. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $969,781.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 99,476 shares of company stock valued at $14,166,944 in the last three months. 19.89% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Garmin

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Garmin during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Garmin by 169.5% in the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 283 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Garmin in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Headinvest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Garmin during the 3rd quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Garmin by 35.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 380 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. 73.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.