Gladius Capital Management LP Acquires Shares of 221 AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in AutoNation in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Avalon Trust Co bought a new stake in AutoNation during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the third quarter worth $67,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 17.9% in the third quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 789 shares of the company’s stock worth $119,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of AutoNation by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,069 shares of the company’s stock valued at $162,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on AN. StockNews.com lowered AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on AutoNation from $142.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on AutoNation from $153.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of AutoNation in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 price target for the company. Finally, Guggenheim increased their target price on AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $176.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AutoNation news, Director David B. Edelson sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.00, for a total transaction of $1,680,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 48,793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,197,224. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.26, for a total transaction of $16,126,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,167,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $672,013,960.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director David B. Edelson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.00, for a total transaction of $1,680,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 48,793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,197,224. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 131,279 shares of company stock valued at $21,041,962. Corporate insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Stock Up 1.4 %

NYSE AN traded up $2.35 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $165.84. 283,542 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 459,660. AutoNation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $123.81 and a 52-week high of $182.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $158.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $146.54. The firm has a market cap of $6.68 billion, a PE ratio of 7.86, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.22.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.49 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 42.44% and a net margin of 3.41%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.05 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AutoNation announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Friday, April 26th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 14.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.