Bank of America Initiates Coverage on American Axle & Manufacturing (NYSE:DCH)

Bank of America began coverage on shares of American Axle & Manufacturing (NYSE:DCH) in a research note released on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a neutral rating on the auto parts company’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded American Axle & Manufacturing from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Zacks Research cut American Axle & Manufacturing from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group increased their price target on American Axle & Manufacturing from $8.50 to $10.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on American Axle & Manufacturing from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, BWS Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of American Axle & Manufacturing in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.12.

American Axle & Manufacturing Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DCH opened at $5.57 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.95, a quick ratio of 2.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.31. The firm has a market cap of $1.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -30.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.61. American Axle & Manufacturing has a 1-year low of $3.00 and a 1-year high of $9.25.

American Axle & Manufacturing (NYSE:DCH) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The auto parts company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.09. American Axle & Manufacturing had a positive return on equity of 10.00% and a negative net margin of 0.34%.The company had revenue of $1.38 billion during the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.06) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that American Axle & Manufacturing will post 0.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Axle & Manufacturing

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DCH. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in American Axle & Manufacturing by 66.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,352,470 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $21,489,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334,115 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in American Axle & Manufacturing during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $136,000. VARCOV Co. purchased a new stake in American Axle & Manufacturing in the 4th quarter worth approximately $992,000. Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of American Axle & Manufacturing by 160.1% in the 4th quarter. Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC now owns 313,568 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,010,000 after buying an additional 193,015 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Axle & Manufacturing in the 4th quarter worth approximately $173,000. Institutional investors own 91.41% of the company’s stock.

More American Axle & Manufacturing News

Here are the key news stories impacting American Axle & Manufacturing this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Deutsche Bank upgraded DCH from “hold” to “buy” and set an $8.00 price target (≈42.6% above the current price), which can attract buyers and provide near-term upside support. Deutsche Bank Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results showed an earnings beat (Q4 EPS of $0.07 vs. consensus ($0.02)) and slight year-over-year revenue growth, giving fundamental backing to the upgrade and reducing downside risk from operations. DCH Earnings Summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple short-form “head-to-head” competitor comparison pieces were published (AmericanBankingNews ran several March 5–6 articles). These are largely aggregative comparisons rather than proprietary catalysts, so they increase newsflow but are unlikely to materially change fundamentals on their own. AmericanBankingNews Head-to-Head
• Negative Sentiment: Technical and balance-sheet/market-pressure factors may be weighing on the stock: DCH sits below its 50‑day moving average (~$8.23), average trading volume is higher than today’s volume (suggesting weaker conviction), and the company carries significant leverage (debt/equity ~3.61), which can limit upside and increase downside risk in a weak auto-cycle. DCH Price & Metrics

American Axle & Manufacturing Company Profile

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc (NYSE: AXL) is a global designer, engineer and manufacturer of driveline and drivetrain systems and components for light vehicles, commercial trucks and off-highway applications. The company’s core product portfolio includes axles, driveshafts, half-shafts, drive module assemblies and differential gears, as well as advanced metallic and composite structures for electric and hybrid vehicles. AAM’s capabilities also encompass system testing, rapid prototyping and precision machining to support both high-volume production and low-volume, specialty vehicle applications.

Founded in 1994 following the divestiture of the Detroit Axle Division of General Motors, American Axle & Manufacturing completed its initial public offering in 1998.