Arizona State Retirement System Trims Stake in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Arizona State Retirement System cut its stake in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 5.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 8,004 shares of the company’s stock after selling 438 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $1,202,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in AutoNation during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in AutoNation during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in AutoNation during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in AutoNation during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in AutoNation by 18.0% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 708 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Bank of America dropped 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, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on AutoNation from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley upgraded AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on AutoNation in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 target price on the stock. 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, AutoNation presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.25.

AutoNation Stock Performance

AN opened at $154.11 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $6.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $152.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $143.90. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.81 and a 1-year high of $182.08.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $5.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.85 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $6.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.67 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 48.76% and a net margin of 3.79%. The company’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.37 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoNation

In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 380,497 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.12, for a total transaction of $54,456,730.64. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,278,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $612,362,391.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now owns 4,167,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $672,013,960.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 380,497 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.12, for a total value of $54,456,730.64. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,278,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $612,362,391.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 501,776 shares of company stock worth $73,818,692. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AutoNation 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.