Arizona State Retirement System Lowers Position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

Arizona State Retirement System cut its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 3.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,057 shares of the company’s stock after selling 168 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $1,117,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABG. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 43.9% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 164 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 39.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 586 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 275.2% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares in the last quarter.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:ABG opened at $229.67 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $239.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $245.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of $4.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.93, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.96. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $201.68 and a 12-month high of $312.56.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last released its earnings results 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). The firm had revenue of $4.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.42% and a return on equity of 15.41%. The business’s revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $7.21 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $236.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $235.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $259.33.

Asbury Automotive Group 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.