Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Sells 21,000 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lessened its position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 98.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 400 shares of the company’s stock after selling 21,000 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $64,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of AutoNation in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new stake in AutoNation in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in AutoNation by 90.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of AutoNation during the second quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 79.7% during the first quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.21, for a total transaction of $17,621,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,880,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $683,777,090.07. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 39,194 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.43, for a total transaction of $7,189,355.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,786,144 shares in the company, valued at $694,492,393.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.21, for a total value of $17,621,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,880,467 shares in the company, valued at $683,777,090.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 216,959 shares of company stock worth $39,346,744. Corporate insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AN shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded AutoNation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $145.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of AutoNation in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of AutoNation from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on AutoNation from $164.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $201.75.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of AN opened at $182.61 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $173.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $166.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.25 billion, a PE ratio of 8.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 1.20. AutoNation, Inc. has a one year low of $123.81 and a one year high of $197.18.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by ($0.32). The firm had revenue of $6.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.72 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 36.50%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.29 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.67 EPS for the current fiscal 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.