Barclays Raises Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Price Target to $92.00

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) had its target price lifted by stock analysts at Barclays from $77.00 to $92.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Barclays‘s price objective points to a potential downside of 0.32% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. UBS Group upped their target price on Sonic Automotive from $90.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Zacks Research raised Sonic Automotive from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $82.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Stephens set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $72.00 target price on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sonic Automotive has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $90.67.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

NYSE SAH opened at $92.30 on Wednesday. Sonic Automotive has a 1 year low of $54.11 and a 1 year high of $99.02. The business’s fifty day moving average is $82.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 22.45% and a net margin of 0.72%.The company’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.48 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive will post 6.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Sonic Automotive

In other Sonic Automotive news, President Jeff Dyke sold 35,114 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.22, for a total transaction of $2,992,415.08. Following the completion of the sale, the president directly owned 543,668 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,331,386.96. This trade represents a 6.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 100,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,408,160. 43.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. A&I Financial Services LLC grew its position in Sonic Automotive by 0.9% during the second quarter. A&I Financial Services LLC now owns 11,755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $997,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the second quarter worth $208,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 64.4% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 131,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,003,000 after acquiring an additional 51,420 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 13.3% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 10,043 shares of the company’s stock worth $689,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Sonic Automotive by 11.5% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 88,126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,043,000 after purchasing an additional 9,100 shares during the last quarter. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sonic Automotive

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.