AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Trading Up 7.8% Following Strong Earnings

AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)’s share price was up 7.8% during mid-day trading on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $173.85 and last traded at $172.87. Approximately 149,137 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 443,239 shares. The stock had previously closed at $160.38.

The company reported $4.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 3.79% and a return on equity of 48.76%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.05 earnings per share.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of AutoNation in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoNation

In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total transaction 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 $659,640,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total transaction 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 $659,640,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 4,167,270 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $672,013,960.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 121,279 shares of company stock valued at $19,361,962. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of AutoNation

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 31.8% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 754,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,300,000 after purchasing an additional 181,942 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 47.0% in the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 342,862 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,491,000 after purchasing an additional 109,571 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 300,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,203,000 after purchasing an additional 1,166 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,748,000. Finally, Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 1.8% in the first quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 267,650 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,317,000 after purchasing an additional 4,720 shares in the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AutoNation Stock Up 5.9 %

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $154.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $144.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.08 billion, a PE ratio of 7.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.24.

About AutoNation

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.