AutoNation (NYSE:AN) PT Raised to $169.00

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) had its price objective hoisted by equities researchers at Guggenheim from $165.00 to $169.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Guggenheim’s price objective points to a potential upside of 9.37% from the company’s current price.

Several other analysts have also commented on the company. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on AutoNation in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 price objective for the company. 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, April 10th. Morgan Stanley raised AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com downgraded AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on AutoNation from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.00.

AutoNation Stock Up 1.4 %

AutoNation stock opened at $154.52 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $152.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.24. AutoNation has a twelve month low of $123.81 and a twelve month high of $182.08.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its 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 company had revenue of $6.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.67 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 48.76% and a net margin of 3.79%. AutoNation’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $6.37 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that AutoNation will post 18.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 380,497 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,278,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $612,362,391.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 380,497 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,278,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $612,362,391.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total transaction of $1,669,866.24. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,267,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $659,640,441.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 501,776 shares of company stock valued at $73,818,692. 0.74% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of AutoNation

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AN. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 3,729.5% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 505,268 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,386,000 after acquiring an additional 492,074 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 29.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,505,122 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,880,000 after acquiring an additional 338,288 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation in the fourth quarter worth $42,748,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 31.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 754,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,300,000 after purchasing an additional 181,942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 211.1% during the 4th quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 202,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,731,000 after purchasing an additional 137,431 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

About AutoNation

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.