Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.33 EPS

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG – Get Rating) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported $9.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $8.94 by $0.33, MarketWatch Earnings reports. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 39.45% and a net margin of 5.41%. The firm had revenue of $3.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.91 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $4.68 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 78.4% on a year-over-year basis.

ABG stock opened at $173.77 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.25 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.21. Asbury Automotive Group has a 52-week low of $146.43 and a 52-week high of $230.96. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $174.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $174.39.

In other news, CEO David W. Hult sold 23,848 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.81, for a total value of $4,669,676.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Miran Maric sold 233 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.79, for a total value of $43,755.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABG. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,236 shares of the company’s stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 19.5% in the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 1,329 shares of the company’s stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $232,000. NEXT Financial Group Inc raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 73.5% in the 4th quarter. NEXT Financial Group Inc now owns 2,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $351,000 after purchasing an additional 862 shares during the period. Finally, Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 18.4% in the 4th quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY now owns 5,965 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,030,000 after purchasing an additional 929 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.91% of the company’s stock.

A number of brokerages recently commented on ABG. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 8th. Zacks Investment Research lowered Asbury Automotive Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 7th. Craig Hallum decreased their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $250.00 to $225.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 16th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Thursday, March 31st. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $206.60.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile (Get Rating)

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.

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