Cerity Partners LLC Takes Position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Cerity Partners LLC bought a new stake in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $281,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 31.8% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 754,956 shares of the company’s stock valued at $114,300,000 after purchasing an additional 181,942 shares in the last quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 262,930 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,487,000 after purchasing an additional 5,930 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 137.5% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 167,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,311,000 after purchasing an additional 96,797 shares in the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 129.0% in the third quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 104,459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,815,000 after purchasing an additional 58,850 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cambria Investment Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 7.3% in the third quarter. Cambria Investment Management L.P. now owns 90,567 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,712,000 after purchasing an additional 6,139 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Price Performance

Shares of AN stock opened at $169.88 on Monday. AutoNation, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.81 and a 12-month high of $182.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.24. 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 fifty day moving average of $154.30 and a 200-day moving average of $144.88.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.45 by $0.04. AutoNation had a net margin of 3.79% and a return on equity of 48.76%. The company had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.49 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.05 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $672,013,960.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Jacqueline A. Travisano sold 3,671 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.98, for a total value of $539,563.58. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $908,630.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 4,167,270 shares in the company, valued at $672,013,960.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 121,279 shares of company stock valued at $19,361,962. 0.74% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of AutoNation in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 target price for the company. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.