Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $256.20.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ABG shares. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of ABG opened at $265.02 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.00 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Asbury Automotive Group has a 1-year low of $195.09 and a 1-year high of $277.13. The company has a 50-day moving average of $241.65 and a 200 day moving average of $237.04.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.58 by ($0.23). The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.16% and a return on equity of 16.51%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $8.12 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Asbury Automotive Group will post 25.17 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ABG. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 366.1% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 189,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,233,000 after purchasing an additional 148,910 shares during the last quarter. Eminence Capital LP grew its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 41.5% during the 2nd quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 498,542 shares of the company’s stock worth $113,603,000 after buying an additional 146,246 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 3rd quarter worth $26,573,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,056,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,818,000 after buying an additional 69,975 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group in the third quarter valued at about $154,270,000.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.