AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) Stock Position Lowered by Private Management Group Inc.

Private Management Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 147,932 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,199 shares during the quarter. Private Management Group Inc. owned 0.35% of AutoNation worth $22,216,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AN. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in AutoNation in the third quarter worth approximately $969,000. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation in the 3rd quarter worth $128,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 35.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 133,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,212,000 after acquiring an additional 34,600 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of AutoNation by 18.0% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 708 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Simplicity Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 9.9% during the third quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC now owns 2,798 shares of the company’s stock valued at $424,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of AutoNation from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. StockNews.com lowered AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI started coverage on AutoNation in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $173.00.

AutoNation Stock Up 2.5 %

AN stock traded up $3.79 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $158.36. The stock had a trading volume of 392,473 shares, compared to its average volume of 442,214. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.81 and a 1-year high of $182.08. The company has a fifty day moving average of $152.92 and a 200 day moving average of $144.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.99, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.24.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $5.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.85 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $6.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.67 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 3.79% and a return on equity of 48.76%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.37 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In other news, CAO Kimberly Dees sold 3,133 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.28, for a total value of $477,093.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 464 shares in the company, valued at $70,657.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other AutoNation news, CAO Kimberly Dees sold 3,133 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.28, for a total value of $477,093.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $70,657.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.26, for a total value of $16,126,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,167,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $672,013,960.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 121,279 shares of company stock valued at $19,361,962. Corporate insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.