Investment House LLC Cuts Holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Investment House LLC cut its stake in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 7.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 34,750 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,784 shares during the quarter. Investment House LLC owned about 0.08% of AutoNation worth $5,219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC raised its position in AutoNation by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 4,061 shares of the company’s stock valued at $610,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of AutoNation by 76.6% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 19,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,970,000 after acquiring an additional 8,579 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its position in shares of AutoNation by 11.6% during the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 18,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,835,000 after acquiring an additional 1,955 shares during the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management increased its position in shares of AutoNation by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 1,989 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC acquired a new position in AutoNation in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $172,000. 94.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Kimberly Dees sold 3,133 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.28, for a total value of $477,093.24. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $70,657.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other AutoNation news, CAO Kimberly Dees sold 3,133 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.28, for a total transaction of $477,093.24. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $70,657.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.26, for a total transaction of $16,126,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,167,270 shares in the company, valued at $672,013,960.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 121,279 shares of company stock valued at $19,361,962. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Stock Down 1.8 %

NYSE:AN traded down $3.06 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $166.82. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 218,278 shares, compared to its average volume of 458,138. The company has a market cap of $6.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.23. AutoNation, Inc. has a one year low of $123.81 and a one year high of $182.08. The business’s 50-day moving average is $154.30 and its 200-day moving average is $144.91.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.49 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 3.41% and a return on equity of 43.48%. The business’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.05 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.92 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AN shares. Morgan Stanley raised AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. StockNews.com cut AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on AutoNation from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI initiated coverage on AutoNation in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AutoNation currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $173.00.

AutoNation Profile

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.