Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) Hits New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM)’s share price reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $22.06 and last traded at $22.0850, with a volume of 17313 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $23.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on ATHM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Autohome from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Autohome in a research report on Monday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $28.00.

Autohome Trading Down 4.2%

The firm has a market cap of $2.60 billion, a PE ratio of 13.09 and a beta of 0.08. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $23.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.51.

Autohome Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. Autohome’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 102.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Autohome

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ATHM. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Autohome by 12.2% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,968,365 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $227,497,000 after acquiring an additional 868,151 shares during the last quarter. Krane Funds Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Autohome by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. Krane Funds Advisors LLC now owns 3,387,052 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $93,178,000 after purchasing an additional 678,214 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in Autohome by 61.4% during the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,393,033 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $35,926,000 after purchasing an additional 530,152 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Autohome during the second quarter worth approximately $12,120,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group raised its stake in shares of Autohome by 32.0% in the 2nd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,215,213 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $31,340,000 after acquiring an additional 294,701 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.08% of the company’s stock.

Autohome Company Profile

Autohome Inc (NYSE: ATHM) operates one of China’s leading online destinations for automobile consumers, offering a comprehensive suite of digital platforms and services throughout the vehicle ownership lifecycle. Headquartered in Beijing, the company’s core website and mobile applications deliver news, reviews, pricing information, photos, videos and interactive tools to help prospective buyers evaluate new and used vehicles. By aggregating rich editorial content with user-generated ratings and expert analyses, Autohome seeks to guide consumers through research, purchase and after-sales decision-making.

In addition to its consumer-facing properties, Autohome provides automakers, dealers and service providers with integrated digital marketing and e-commerce solutions.