LSV Asset Management Sells 25,794 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

LSV Asset Management decreased its holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 821,260 shares of the company’s stock after selling 25,794 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $123,337,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in AutoNation in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 17.9% during the 3rd quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in AutoNation by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,069 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in AutoNation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $172,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of AutoNation stock traded up $1.91 during trading on Friday, reaching $165.18. 370,301 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 561,289. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $156.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $145.73. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.81 and a 1-year high of $182.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.65 billion, a PE ratio of 7.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.49 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 42.44% and a net margin of 3.41%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.05 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoNation declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Friday, April 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 14.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total value of $1,669,866.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,267,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $659,640,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total value of $1,669,866.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,267,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $659,640,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Kimberly Dees sold 3,133 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 464 shares in the company, valued at $70,657.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 131,279 shares of company stock worth $21,041,962. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on AutoNation from $142.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on AutoNation from $153.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoNation has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.63.

AutoNation 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.