Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eight research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $247.5714.

ABG has been the subject of several research reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Barclays dropped their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $250.00 to $230.00 and set a “reduce” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 price objective on Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of ABG stock opened at $217.16 on Thursday. Asbury Automotive Group has a 1 year low of $201.68 and a 1 year high of $279.33. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $236.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $238.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.66 and a beta of 0.82.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $6.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.70 by ($0.03). Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 14.51% and a net margin of 2.73%.The company had revenue of $4.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $7.26 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Asbury Automotive Group will post 26.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABG. Magnolia Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 18.7% during the third quarter. Magnolia Group LLC now owns 282,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,087,000 after acquiring an additional 44,500 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 631.4% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 7,036 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,720,000 after purchasing an additional 6,074 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 76,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,739,000 after buying an additional 9,632 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 545.7% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 143,388 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,051,000 after purchasing an additional 121,183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the third quarter worth $1,637,000.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc (NYSE:ABG) is one of the largest automotive retailers in the United States. Headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, the company operates a network of franchised dealerships representing a diverse portfolio of automotive brands. Its core business activities include the sale of new and pre-owned vehicles, as well as the provision of vehicle finance, insurance and protection products to retail customers.

In addition to retail sales, Asbury offers a comprehensive suite of after-sales services, from scheduled maintenance and certified collision repair to parts distribution.