Insider Buying: Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Major Shareholder Buys $2,908,516.80 in Stock

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) major shareholder Paul Rusnak purchased 48,540 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $59.92 per share, for a total transaction of $2,908,516.80. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 5,088,519 shares in the company, valued at $304,904,058.48. This represents a 0.96% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

SAH opened at $66.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.63 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a fifty day moving average of $62.61 and a 200 day moving average of $68.86. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.00 and a fifty-two week high of $89.62.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.01). Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 0.78% and a return on equity of 21.56%. The company had revenue of $3.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.51 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.84%.

Sonic Automotive News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Sonic Automotive this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Large insider accumulation — Major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak bought tens of thousands of shares in multiple transactions in February, raising his stake to roughly ~5.1M shares; repeated insider purchases at ~\$60 signal board-level confidence and likely supported buying interest. SEC Filing: Insider Purchases
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend declared — Sonic announced a quarterly dividend of $0.38/share (ex-dividend March 13; payable April 15), implying a ~2.4% yield and a ~41% payout ratio, which can attract income-focused investors and help support the share price.
• Positive Sentiment: Record gross profit highlighted — Management pointed to record gross profit in Q4, suggesting operational improvements that could underwrite margin recovery if sustained. Investing.com: Record Gross Profit
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings materials available — The Q4 call transcript and slides were posted for deeper review (F&I, EchoPark/used-vehicle trends and inventory commentary are areas analysts will parse for guidance changes). Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst views remain mixed — Needham reaffirmed a buy and a $90 target while Stephens trimmed its target to $67 and is at equal weight; mixed research keeps near-term consensus ambiguous and can amplify volatility. The Fly: PT Change
• Negative Sentiment: Slight Q4 miss and revenue pressure — Q4 EPS of $1.52 missed consensus by $0.01 and revenue of $3.87B trailed estimates (~$3.94B); revenue fell ~0.6% YoY and net margin remained thin, giving short-term bears ammunition about demand and margin durability. Zacks: Q4 Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Structural concerns flagged by analysts — Commentary and follow-up pieces note elevated debt levels, tariff exposure and margin risks that could cap the stock’s near-term upside absent clearer sales/margin improvement. Zacks: How to Approach Post-Q4

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Sonic Automotive by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 510,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,608,000 after buying an additional 54,455 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 4th quarter worth $217,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 145.5% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 79,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,942,000 after purchasing an additional 47,341 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Sonic Automotive by 48.6% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 101,224 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,262,000 after purchasing an additional 33,088 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Numerai GP LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 4th quarter valued at about $343,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on SAH. Zacks Research upgraded Sonic Automotive from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen cut Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $68.00 price objective on Sonic Automotive in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 target price on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Thursday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $77.75.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc is a publicly traded automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised new-car dealerships and used-vehicle dealerships across the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company offers a range of services that include vehicle sales, leasing, finance and insurance products, service and parts, and collision repair. Sonic Automotive’s dealerships represent numerous major automotive brands, and the company also markets a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles under its own banner.

In addition to its core dealership operations, Sonic Automotive has developed digital retail capabilities that allow customers to research, shop and complete transactions online.