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Penske (PAG) Down 1.3% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Rebound?
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A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Penske Automotive (PAG - Free Report) . Shares have lost about 1.3% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Penske due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.
Penske Q2 Earnings Top Expectations
Penske reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $3.62 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.38 by 7.1%. Adjusted earnings declined 4.2% from the comparable $3.78 per share a year ago.
Revenues rose 6% year over year to $8.51 billion and topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.93 billion by 7.4%. Retail automotive same-store new and used units increased 5%, while same-store service and parts gross margin improved 80 basis points to 59.5%.
Retail Automotive Sales Rise
Retail automotive revenues increased 6% year over year to $7.3 billion. New vehicle revenues rose 5.9% to $3.38 billion, used vehicle revenues advanced 9.4% to $2.47 billion and finance and insurance revenues increased 1.3% to $211 million. Service and parts revenues rose 1.6% to $867.1 million, while fleet and wholesale revenues declined 0.8% to $375.6 million. Same-store revenues grew 5.7% to $7.12 billion.
Retail automotive gross profit slipped 0.7% to $1.16 billion, with gross margin contracting to 15.8% from 16.9%. New vehicle gross profit per retail unit fell 10.4% to $4,782, while used vehicle gross profit per unit declined 8.8% to $2,095. Service and parts gross profit increased 3.1% to $517 million.
Truck Market Improvement
Retail commercial truck revenues declined 1.7% year over year to $927.8 million. Total new and used truck units retailed increased 1.7% to 5,431, as a 64.8% jump in used units offset a 7.8% decline in new units. Retail commercial truck gross profit slipped 0.6% to $142.8 million, while gross margin improved 20 basis points to 15.4%.
Class 8 market orders increased 170% in the second quarter. Premier Truck Group's backlog was about 10,400 units, with the majority expected to convert into retail sales in the second half of 2026. Used truck demand also strengthened as freight conditions improved.
Distribution Business Delivers Growth
Commercial Vehicle Distribution and Other revenues jumped 41.1% year over year to $283.9 million. Gross profit rose 30.5% to $57.7 million, although gross margin declined to 20.3% from 22%.
Australia's off-highway business was a key contributor, with revenues increasing 63% in the quarter. The company secured more than $300 million of orders during the period, bringing its 2026 secured order book to nearly $660 million, supported by energy solutions, mining and defense demand.
PAG Gets Lift From PTS
Penske Transportation Solutions contributed $57.4 million in earnings to PAG, up 7% year over year. The improvement reflected growth in full-service leasing, better fleet utilization, lower operating expenses and lower interest costs.
PTS managed more than 379,200 trucks, tractors and trailers. Continued weakness in the rental market and a lower gain on used-truck sales partly offset the benefits from improved freight conditions and fleet-rightsizing actions.
Profitability Faces Margin Pressure
Consolidated gross profit edged up 0.4% to $1.36 billion, but gross margin narrowed to 15.9% from 16.8%. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 3.2% to $974 million, and operating income declined 7.6% to $337.6 million.
Operating margin fell to 4% from 4.5%. Adjusted EBITDA was $401.8 million, up 0.3%, while other interest expense rose 53.2% to $33.1 million, reflecting higher borrowing costs associated with acquisitions.
Balance Sheet and Capital Returns
For the first six months of 2026, cash flow from operations totaled $418 million and capital expenditures were $134.9 million. As of June 30, liquidity was about $1.4 billion, including $69.5 million in cash.
PAG repurchased 265,104 shares for $42.5 million in the first half, leaving $221.2 million available under its repurchase authorization. The board also raised the quarterly dividend 1.4% to $1.44 per share, marking the company's 23rd consecutive quarterly increase.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
Since the earnings release, investors have witnessed a upward trend in fresh estimates.
VGM Scores
At this time, Penske has a subpar Growth Score of D, however its Momentum Score is doing a lot better with a B. Following the exact same course, the stock has a score of B on the value side, putting it in the second quintile for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Interestingly, Penske has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.
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Penske (PAG) Down 1.3% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Rebound?
A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Penske Automotive (PAG - Free Report) . Shares have lost about 1.3% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Penske due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.
Penske Q2 Earnings Top Expectations
Penske reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $3.62 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.38 by 7.1%. Adjusted earnings declined 4.2% from the comparable $3.78 per share a year ago.
Revenues rose 6% year over year to $8.51 billion and topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.93 billion by 7.4%. Retail automotive same-store new and used units increased 5%, while same-store service and parts gross margin improved 80 basis points to 59.5%.
Retail Automotive Sales Rise
Retail automotive revenues increased 6% year over year to $7.3 billion. New vehicle revenues rose 5.9% to $3.38 billion, used vehicle revenues advanced 9.4% to $2.47 billion and finance and insurance revenues increased 1.3% to $211 million. Service and parts revenues rose 1.6% to $867.1 million, while fleet and wholesale revenues declined 0.8% to $375.6 million. Same-store revenues grew 5.7% to $7.12 billion.
Retail automotive gross profit slipped 0.7% to $1.16 billion, with gross margin contracting to 15.8% from 16.9%. New vehicle gross profit per retail unit fell 10.4% to $4,782, while used vehicle gross profit per unit declined 8.8% to $2,095. Service and parts gross profit increased 3.1% to $517 million.
Truck Market Improvement
Retail commercial truck revenues declined 1.7% year over year to $927.8 million. Total new and used truck units retailed increased 1.7% to 5,431, as a 64.8% jump in used units offset a 7.8% decline in new units. Retail commercial truck gross profit slipped 0.6% to $142.8 million, while gross margin improved 20 basis points to 15.4%.
Class 8 market orders increased 170% in the second quarter. Premier Truck Group's backlog was about 10,400 units, with the majority expected to convert into retail sales in the second half of 2026. Used truck demand also strengthened as freight conditions improved.
Distribution Business Delivers Growth
Commercial Vehicle Distribution and Other revenues jumped 41.1% year over year to $283.9 million. Gross profit rose 30.5% to $57.7 million, although gross margin declined to 20.3% from 22%.
Australia's off-highway business was a key contributor, with revenues increasing 63% in the quarter. The company secured more than $300 million of orders during the period, bringing its 2026 secured order book to nearly $660 million, supported by energy solutions, mining and defense demand.
PAG Gets Lift From PTS
Penske Transportation Solutions contributed $57.4 million in earnings to PAG, up 7% year over year. The improvement reflected growth in full-service leasing, better fleet utilization, lower operating expenses and lower interest costs.
PTS managed more than 379,200 trucks, tractors and trailers. Continued weakness in the rental market and a lower gain on used-truck sales partly offset the benefits from improved freight conditions and fleet-rightsizing actions.
Profitability Faces Margin Pressure
Consolidated gross profit edged up 0.4% to $1.36 billion, but gross margin narrowed to 15.9% from 16.8%. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased 3.2% to $974 million, and operating income declined 7.6% to $337.6 million.
Operating margin fell to 4% from 4.5%. Adjusted EBITDA was $401.8 million, up 0.3%, while other interest expense rose 53.2% to $33.1 million, reflecting higher borrowing costs associated with acquisitions.
Balance Sheet and Capital Returns
For the first six months of 2026, cash flow from operations totaled $418 million and capital expenditures were $134.9 million. As of June 30, liquidity was about $1.4 billion, including $69.5 million in cash.
PAG repurchased 265,104 shares for $42.5 million in the first half, leaving $221.2 million available under its repurchase authorization. The board also raised the quarterly dividend 1.4% to $1.44 per share, marking the company's 23rd consecutive quarterly increase.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
Since the earnings release, investors have witnessed a upward trend in fresh estimates.
VGM Scores
At this time, Penske has a subpar Growth Score of D, however its Momentum Score is doing a lot better with a B. Following the exact same course, the stock has a score of B on the value side, putting it in the second quintile for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Interestingly, Penske has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.