JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 14,360 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. $AN

JPMorgan Chase & Co. trimmed its position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 132,935 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,360 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 0.36% of AutoNation worth $29,082,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of AutoNation by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 5,126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,121,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in AutoNation in the third quarter worth $287,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in AutoNation by 13.3% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 519 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in AutoNation by 94.6% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tweedy Browne Co LLC lifted its position in AutoNation by 104.6% during the third quarter. Tweedy Browne Co LLC now owns 5,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,133,000 after buying an additional 2,648 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AN. Weiss Ratings cut shares of AutoNation from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of AutoNation in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $233.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $222.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Sunday, February 8th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $248.67.

AutoNation Price Performance

AN opened at $181.07 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $6.22 billion, a PE ratio of 10.61 and a beta of 0.89. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $202.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $208.00. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $148.33 and a 1 year high of $228.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 6th. The company reported $5.08 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.91 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $6.93 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.21 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.35% and a return on equity of 31.69%. AutoNation’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.97 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoNation Profile

AutoNation, Inc is the largest automotive retailer in the United States, operating a network of franchised new vehicle dealerships, pre-owned vehicle superstores and collision-repair centers. The company offers a comprehensive range of automotive products and services, including the sale of new cars and light trucks from leading manufacturers, certified pre-owned vehicles and a wide selection of used models. In addition to retail vehicle sales, AutoNation provides financing, insurance and extended service contracts through its in-house financial services division, as well as genuine and aftermarket parts, factory-recommended maintenance and collision-repair services.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H.