Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Sells 424 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank reduced its holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,414 shares of the company’s stock after selling 424 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $963,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AN. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in AutoNation by 31.8% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 754,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,300,000 after purchasing an additional 181,942 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in AutoNation by 137.5% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 167,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,311,000 after purchasing an additional 96,797 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in AutoNation in the fourth quarter worth approximately $9,247,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. increased its holdings in AutoNation by 129.0% in the third quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 104,459 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,815,000 after purchasing an additional 58,850 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in AutoNation by 160.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 84,743 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,830,000 after purchasing an additional 52,193 shares in the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was 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 $659,640,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CAO Kimberly Dees sold 3,133 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.28, for a total transaction of $477,093.24. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $70,657.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 121,279 shares of company stock valued at $19,361,962. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Stock Up 5.9 %

Shares of NYSE:AN opened at $169.88 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $7.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.06, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. AutoNation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.81 and a 12-month high of $182.08. The business’s 50 day moving average is $154.30 and its 200 day moving average is $144.88.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.45 by $0.04. AutoNation had a return on equity of 48.76% and a net margin of 3.79%. The business had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.49 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.05 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America decreased their price objective on AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on AutoNation from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AutoNation currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.00.

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.