Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $335.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Stephens raised Asbury Automotive Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $277.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Cfra set a $225.00 target price on Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $251.14.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Up 0.9%

ABG opened at $248.32 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 1.30. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $245.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $236.47. Asbury Automotive Group has a twelve month low of $201.68 and a twelve month high of $312.56.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $7.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.82 by $0.61. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 15.41% and a net margin of 3.13%.The company had revenue of $4.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.40 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group will post 26.28 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Asbury Automotive Group

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, Director Juanita T. James sold 625 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.10, for a total value of $152,562.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,855 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,673,305.50. This trade represents a 8.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Maureen F. Morrison sold 800 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.61, for a total value of $204,488.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,824 shares in the company, valued at $1,488,672.64. The trade was a 12.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,957 shares of company stock valued at $745,501 in the last ninety days. 0.59% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 39.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 586 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,111,000. Advisor Resource Council bought a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group in the first quarter valued at about $455,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 73.2% in the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 18,820 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,156,000 after acquiring an additional 7,953 shares during the period. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC raised its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 23.8% in the first quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,099 shares of the company’s stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares in the last quarter.

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.