AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Director Acquires 530 Shares of Stock

AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) Director Jacqueline Travisano acquired 530 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $185.29 per share, with a total value of $98,203.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,419 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,745,246.51. This represents a 5.96% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

AutoNation Price Performance

Shares of AN stock traded up $2.31 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $186.31. 439,749 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 463,137. AutoNation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $151.82 and a fifty-two week high of $235.81. The firm has a market cap of $5.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.74. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $175.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $192.98.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of AutoNation from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. 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 note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of AutoNation from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of AutoNation from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Seven 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 currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $228.20.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoNation

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the second quarter worth approximately $438,689,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in AutoNation in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,925,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in AutoNation in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,673,000. Private Management Group Inc. lifted its holdings in AutoNation by 85.9% in the 3rd quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 144,808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,799,000 after purchasing an additional 66,929 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in AutoNation by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,478,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $288,784,000 after purchasing an additional 56,641 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

About AutoNation

AutoNation, Inc is a U.S. automotive retailer that sells new and used vehicles through a network of dealerships. Its stores offer vehicles from a range of manufacturers, along with related products and services.

The company also provides vehicle maintenance and repair, parts, and collision-repair services. Its offerings include financing and insurance products, as well as online tools that support vehicle research and purchasing.

Founded in 1996, AutoNation operates dealerships across the United States, with a presence concentrated in the Sun Belt.