Legal & General Group Plc Takes Position in AutoNation, Inc. $AN

Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 45,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,413,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Employees Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the third quarter worth $48,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in AutoNation by 37.4% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 235 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in AutoNation by 49.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 259 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in AutoNation by 33.0% during the 1st 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. Finally, Monetary Solutions Ltd acquired a new stake in AutoNation during the 4th quarter worth about $64,000. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoNation Stock Up 1.4%

AN opened at $204.11 on Wednesday. AutoNation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $176.62 and a fifty-two week high of $235.81. The business has a 50-day moving average of $201.80 and a 200-day moving average of $197.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.18. The company has a market capitalization of $6.75 billion, a PE ratio of 9.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.72.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $5.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.48 by $0.08. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.24% and a net margin of 2.82%.The business had revenue of $6.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.26 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 21.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at AutoNation

In other AutoNation news, Director Lisa Lutoff-Perlo sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $198,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 7,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,757,580. The trade was a 10.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Argus raised their target price on shares of AutoNation from $241.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Stephens boosted 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. Seaport Research Partners restated a “buy” rating and issued a $255.00 price target on shares of AutoNation in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of AutoNation from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $250.00.

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.