Motorcycle Stocks: Are They A Good Ride?

Due to the high price of gasoline, many Americans are turning to motorcycles as an alternative to their SUVs and large sedans. Could it be that motorcycle stocks are a play on high gas prices? Are motorcycles considered to be a green vehicle?

Here are a few stocks for your review to see if they are worth taking a ride on:

Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. (DMH) This Italian based company has been around since 1906. Its brands include Superbike, Super Sport, Sport Naked, Sport Touring, Multistrada, and Sport Classic. It has had negative earnings, but has a forward P/E of 208, with a price sales ratio of 1.5.

Harley-Davidson, Inc. (HOG) A classic company founded in 1903, it is the largest American manufacturer of motorcycles. Last year, the company was fortunate enough to change their NYSE stock symbol from HDI to HOG, which is a nickname for the Harley motorcycles. [Some trivia: The term HOG comes from the fact that in the South in the 1920's, Harley motorcycle racers had a pig or hog as a mascot. Then in 1983, the Harley Owners Group was set up using the HOG acronym.] It has a P/E of 16.5, a [PEG] of 1.4, and pays a yield of 1.6%.

Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (HMC) This company is obviously not a pure play, since its primary business is manufacturing automobiles. But, it also makes trucks, scooters, robots, jets, ATVs, boats, generators, engines, and garden equipment. It has a forward P/E of 10.5, a [PEG] of 1.2, and a yield of .4%.

Polaris Industries Inc. (PII) This company owns Victory Motorcycles. It also manufactures ATVs and snowmobiles. Its motorcycle brands include Victory Vegas, Kingpin, Kingpin Tour, Hammer, Hammer S, Eight Ball, and Vegas Jackpot. It has a P/E of 19.2, a [PEG] of 1.3, and a decent yield of 2.7%.

There are also a few extremely speculative microcap motorcycle stocks including Bad Toys Holdings, Inc [BTYH.OB], Patriot Motorcycle Corporation [PMCY.PK], and Ultra Motorcycle Inc. [UMCC.PK]

The larger cap stocks can be tracked at Stockpickr.com.

Disclosure: The author owns HOG and DMH.

DMH vs HMC vs HOG vs PII 1-yr chart