AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of AutoNation (NYSE:AN) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has $185.00 price target on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on AN. Citigroup reduced their price objective on AutoNation from $255.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Argus boosted their price target on shares of AutoNation from $241.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of AutoNation from $230.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Seaport Research Partners reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $255.00 target price on shares of AutoNation in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Stephens lifted their price target on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $227.50.

AutoNation Price Performance

AN stock opened at $184.15 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $5.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.09, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.82. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $175.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $192.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.74. AutoNation has a 12-month low of $151.82 and a 12-month high of $235.81.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $5.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.08 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.93 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.18% and a net margin of 2.63%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.01 EPS. On average, analysts expect that AutoNation will post 20.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of AutoNation

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 73.9% in the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 193 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AutoNation by 33.0% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 306 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the second quarter worth $63,000. Heritage Family Offices LLP purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 3rd quarter worth about $67,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in AutoNation in the 3rd quarter valued at about $85,000. 94.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc is a U.S.-based automotive retailer that sells new and used vehicles through a network of dealerships and online sales channels. The company represents a range of domestic, import and luxury automotive brands, offering passenger cars, trucks and sport utility vehicles.

In addition to vehicle sales, AutoNation provides automotive maintenance and repair, parts, collision-repair services, vehicle protection products and financing options. Its retail operations include traditional dealerships as well as AutoNation USA locations, which focus primarily on used vehicles and related services.

Founded in 1996 as Republic Industries, the company adopted the AutoNation name as it developed its automotive retail business.