Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) Stock Crosses Above 50 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $18.42 and traded as high as $22.39. Autohome shares last traded at $21.4310, with a volume of 628,249 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ATHM. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Autohome from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. HSBC downgraded Autohome from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $17.30 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Autohome in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $17.15.

Autohome Stock Down 0.5%

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $18.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.44. The firm has a market cap of $2.47 billion, a PE ratio of 16.36 and a beta of 0.23.

Autohome Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. Autohome’s payout ratio is presently 183.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Yan Zeng sold 24,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total transaction of $105,705.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 169,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $739,239. This represents a 12.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CTO Bibo Xiang sold 10,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total value of $45,709.80. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 62,368 shares in the company, valued at $271,300.80. This represents a 14.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Corporate insiders own 5.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Autohome

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Autohome during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Autohome by 205.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,652 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 1,112 shares in the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD lifted its position in shares of Autohome by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 3,271 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Autohome by 30.5% during the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,886 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 674 shares during the period. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Autohome during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $106,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.08% of the company’s stock.

About Autohome

Autohome Inc (NYSE: ATHM) operates one of China’s leading online destinations for automobile consumers, offering a comprehensive suite of digital platforms and services throughout the vehicle ownership lifecycle. Headquartered in Beijing, the company’s core website and mobile applications deliver news, reviews, pricing information, photos, videos and interactive tools to help prospective buyers evaluate new and used vehicles. By aggregating rich editorial content with user-generated ratings and expert analyses, Autohome seeks to guide consumers through research, purchase and after-sales decision-making.

In addition to its consumer-facing properties, Autohome provides automakers, dealers and service providers with integrated digital marketing and e-commerce solutions.