Rhumbline Advisers Has $19.04 Million Stock Holdings in AutoNation, Inc. $AN

Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 18.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 87,048 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,514 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.24% of AutoNation worth $19,043,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AutoNation in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,401,000. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,251,000. Davis Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the third quarter valued at about $2,024,000. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 65.2% during the third quarter. Dynasty Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,529,000 after buying an additional 2,759 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 873.3% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $971,000 after buying an additional 4,384 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on AN shares. Evercore boosted their target price on AutoNation from $240.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $222.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of AutoNation from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $235.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of AutoNation from $225.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Stephens increased their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $228.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $248.11.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of AN opened at $200.11 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $7.30 billion, a PE ratio of 11.73 and a beta of 0.88. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $210.74 and a 200-day moving average of $210.80. AutoNation, Inc. has a one year low of $148.33 and a one year high of $228.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The company reported $5.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.91 by $0.17. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.35% and a return on equity of 31.69%. The company had revenue of $6.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.97 EPS. AutoNation’s quarterly revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current year.

AutoNation announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, October 31st that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 13.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

AutoNation Profile

AutoNation, Inc is the largest automotive retailer in the United States, operating a network of franchised new vehicle dealerships, pre-owned vehicle superstores and collision-repair centers. The company offers a comprehensive range of automotive products and services, including the sale of new cars and light trucks from leading manufacturers, certified pre-owned vehicles and a wide selection of used models. In addition to retail vehicle sales, AutoNation provides financing, insurance and extended service contracts through its in-house financial services division, as well as genuine and aftermarket parts, factory-recommended maintenance and collision-repair services.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H.