Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Stock Price

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) had its price target upped by Barclays from $230.00 to $235.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Asbury Automotive Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Monday, December 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $235.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $249.00.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Performance

Shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock opened at $195.03 on Tuesday. Asbury Automotive Group has a one year low of $184.61 and a one year high of $274.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.77 and a beta of 0.80. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $211.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $228.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.35.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director B. Christopher Disantis bought 500 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $202.30 per share, for a total transaction of $101,150.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 5,400 shares in the company, valued at $1,092,420. The trade was a 10.20% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.59% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ABG. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $77,963,000. Eminence Capital LP grew its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 36.0% in the second quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 1,002,160 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,055,000 after acquiring an additional 265,539 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 106.5% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 296,057 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,842,000 after acquiring an additional 152,669 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,684,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 261.7% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 159,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,025,000 after acquiring an additional 115,504 shares in the last quarter.

About Asbury Automotive Group

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.