Captrust Financial Advisors Reduces Position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Captrust Financial Advisors trimmed its position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 13.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,828 shares of the company’s stock after selling 273 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors’ holdings in AutoNation were worth $310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 315 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in AutoNation by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,290 shares of the company’s stock worth $219,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC raised its holdings in AutoNation by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 3,472 shares of the company’s stock worth $590,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 11,171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,897,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 3,866 shares of the company’s stock valued at $657,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $194.00 to $176.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AutoNation from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 10th. Cfra Research upgraded shares of AutoNation to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Guggenheim lowered their price target on shares of AutoNation from $212.00 to $183.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, AutoNation currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.75.

AutoNation Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:AN opened at $187.17 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.06 billion, a PE ratio of 11.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.00. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $148.33 and a 1 year high of $198.50. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $171.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $174.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $4.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.35 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $6.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.53 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.59% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.49 earnings per share. Analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.