AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $244.00.

A number of brokerages have commented on AN. Wall Street Zen cut shares of AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 13th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of AutoNation in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on AutoNation from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on AutoNation from $240.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 24th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoNation

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AN. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of AutoNation by 4.9% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 5,126 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,121,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in AutoNation in the 3rd quarter worth $287,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its stake in AutoNation by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 519 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its stake in AutoNation by 94.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 590 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tweedy Browne Co LLC raised its holdings in AutoNation by 104.6% during the third quarter. Tweedy Browne Co LLC now owns 5,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,133,000 after acquiring an additional 2,648 shares during the period. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AutoNation Stock Down 0.4%

AN stock opened at $206.54 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $7.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.79. The business’s 50-day moving average is $206.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $207.04. AutoNation has a fifty-two week low of $148.33 and a fifty-two week high of $228.92.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The company reported $5.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.85 by $0.16. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.84% and a net margin of 2.38%.The business had revenue of $7.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.02 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that AutoNation will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current year.

AutoNation announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Friday, October 31st that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.