JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $8.90 Million Stake in Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its position in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) by 19.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 116,909 shares of the company’s stock after selling 28,756 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.34% of Sonic Automotive worth $8,896,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SAH. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 992.5% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 3rd quarter worth about $63,000. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 3rd quarter worth about $78,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at about $109,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 2nd quarter valued at about $168,000. Institutional investors own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on SAH shares. Zacks Research cut Sonic Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Morgan Stanley set a $68.00 price target on Sonic Automotive in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Barclays set a $67.00 price target on Sonic Automotive in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $77.50.

Insider Activity

In other Sonic Automotive news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak purchased 48,540 shares of Sonic Automotive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $59.92 per share, with a total value of $2,908,516.80. Following the transaction, the insider owned 5,088,519 shares in the company, valued at $304,904,058.48. This trade represents a 0.96% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 100,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,994,472. 43.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

Shares of Sonic Automotive stock opened at $65.92 on Monday. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a one year low of $52.00 and a one year high of $89.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.44, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

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

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.84%.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

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.