Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the six analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $263.00.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $290.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Craig Hallum lowered Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, COO Daniel Clara sold 1,217 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.64, for a total transaction of $361,010.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 3,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,111,510.08. The trade was a 24.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABG. GoodHaven Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group in the 4th quarter worth about $2,916,000. Magnolia Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Magnolia Group LLC now owns 149,123 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,241,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 52.3% during the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 7,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,897,000 after acquiring an additional 2,680 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management purchased a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 4th quarter valued at $221,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 211,766 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,465,000 after acquiring an additional 3,273 shares during the last quarter.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Down 0.9 %

ABG stock opened at $211.62 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.84 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Asbury Automotive Group has a 1-year low of $205.37 and a 1-year high of $312.56. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $262.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $250.84.

About Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.