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 seven analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $258.50.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ABG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $290.00 to $250.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Craig Hallum cut shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup assumed coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $236.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Up 0.2 %

Asbury Automotive Group stock opened at $218.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $232.82 and a 200-day moving average of $249.13. The company has a market cap of $4.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.16 and a beta of 1.04. Asbury Automotive Group has a one year low of $201.68 and a one year high of $312.56.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $6.82 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.84 by ($0.02). Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 16.29% and a net margin of 2.50%. The firm had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $7.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Asbury Automotive Group will post 26.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Asbury Automotive Group

In related 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 owns 3,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,111,510.08. This trade represents a 24.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Asbury Automotive Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $82,426,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $82,079,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,118,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 30,639.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 129,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $285,790,000 after buying an additional 128,991 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eminence Capital LP grew its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 787,775 shares of the company’s stock worth $191,453,000 after buying an additional 107,317 shares during the period.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

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.