JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Price Target to $67.00

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) had its price objective increased by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $65.00 to $67.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “underweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target indicates a potential downside of 5.43% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on SAH. Bank of America assumed coverage on Sonic Automotive in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Friday, March 27th. Stephens cut their price target on Sonic Automotive from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Zacks Research lowered Sonic Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, January 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $77.50.

Sonic Automotive Stock Up 5.2%

SAH stock opened at $70.85 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $2.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.90, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.82. Sonic Automotive has a fifty-two week low of $54.11 and a fifty-two week high of $89.62. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $63.47 and a 200-day moving average of $64.48.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.94 billion. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 21.54% and a net margin of 0.78%.The firm’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.51 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Sonic Automotive will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak purchased 48,540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $59.92 per share, with a total value of $2,908,516.80. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 5,088,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $304,904,058.48. This trade represents a 0.96% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 100,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,994,472. 43.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SAH. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 37.1% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 13,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $795,000 after purchasing an additional 3,777 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Sonic Automotive by 13.6% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 23,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,328,000 after purchasing an additional 2,793 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Sonic Automotive by 5.8% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $504,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Sonic Automotive by 124.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 355,328 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,239,000 after purchasing an additional 197,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in Sonic Automotive by 15.8% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 38,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,204,000 after purchasing an additional 5,286 shares during the last quarter. 46.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Sonic Automotive

Sonic Automotive, Inc is a publicly traded automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised new-car dealerships and used-vehicle dealerships across the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company offers a range of services that include vehicle sales, leasing, finance and insurance products, service and parts, and collision repair. Sonic Automotive’s dealerships represent numerous major automotive brands, and the company also markets a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles under its own banner.

In addition to its core dealership operations, Sonic Automotive has developed digital retail capabilities that allow customers to research, shop and complete transactions online.