Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the ten brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $77.50.

Several brokerages have commented on SAH. Zacks Research downgraded Sonic Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Barclays set a $67.00 price target on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 price target on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $68.00 price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Monday, December 8th.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak acquired 11,481 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $59.95 per share, with a total value of $688,285.95. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 5,100,000 shares in the company, valued at $305,745,000. This trade represents a 0.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders purchased a total of 100,000 shares of company stock valued at $5,994,472 in the last ninety days. 43.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sonic Automotive

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,646,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,278,000 after buying an additional 96,836 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 701,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,623,000 after acquiring an additional 62,426 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted 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 acquiring an additional 54,455 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 20.5% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 383,117 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,151,000 after acquiring an additional 65,266 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 375,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,204,000 after acquiring an additional 4,443 shares in the last quarter. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:SAH opened at $61.06 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a PE ratio of 18.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $61.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.59. Sonic Automotive has a 1 year low of $52.00 and a 1 year high of $89.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.01). Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 21.54% and a net margin of 0.78%.The business had revenue of $3.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.51 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Sonic Automotive will post 6.14 EPS for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is currently 44.84%.

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.