AutoNation (AN) to Release Earnings on Friday

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) will be announcing its earnings results before the market opens on Friday, April 26th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $4.49 per share for the quarter. Investors that are interested in participating in the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $5.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.85 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $6.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.67 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 48.76% and a net margin of 3.79%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.37 EPS. On average, analysts expect AutoNation to post $19 EPS for the current fiscal year and $20 EPS for the next fiscal year.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AN opened at $154.52 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $152.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.05. AutoNation has a 1 year low of $123.81 and a 1 year high of $182.08. The firm has a market cap of $6.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.82, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Insider Transactions at AutoNation

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the business’s 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 in the company, valued at approximately $659,640,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the 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. Insiders sold a total of 501,776 shares of company stock worth $73,818,692 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Point72 Europe London LLP acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in AutoNation in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in AutoNation in the first quarter valued at about $65,000. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 101.6% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,038 shares of the company’s stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 9.3% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.