AutoNation Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:AN)

AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 2,973 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 402% compared to the typical volume of 592 put options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AN shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on AutoNation from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Evercore ISI started coverage on AutoNation in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.26, for a total transaction of $16,126,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,167,270 shares in the company, valued at $672,013,960.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.26, for a total transaction of $16,126,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,167,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $672,013,960.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total value of $1,669,866.24. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,267,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $659,640,441.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 501,776 shares of company stock worth $73,818,692. 0.74% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoNation

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Realta Investment Advisors grew its position in AutoNation by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Realta Investment Advisors now owns 1,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $212,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC grew its position in AutoNation by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 4,061 shares of the company’s stock valued at $610,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $172,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Finally, Range Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 4,506 shares of the company’s stock worth $682,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Stock Performance

NYSE AN opened at $153.37 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $6.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.77. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $152.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $143.99. AutoNation has a fifty-two week low of $123.81 and a fifty-two week high of $182.08.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $5.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.85 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $6.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.67 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 48.76% and a net margin of 3.79%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.37 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that AutoNation will post 19.05 earnings per share for the current year.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.