Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Cut to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Monday morning.

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Asbury Automotive Group from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and set a $230.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, June 10th.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ABG opened at $231.99 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $236.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $226.24. Asbury Automotive Group has a fifty-two week low of $178.40 and a fifty-two week high of $277.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.68 billion, a PE ratio of 8.45 and a beta of 1.16.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The company reported $6.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.31 by ($0.91). The firm had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 20.12% and a net margin of 3.68%. The company’s revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $8.95 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group will post 29.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total value of $113,590.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 56,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,911,548.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 26.4% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 20,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,768,000 after acquiring an additional 4,224 shares during the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 11.7% during the first quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 21,040 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,961,000 after buying an additional 2,198 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 31.3% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 17,589 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,957,000 after purchasing an additional 4,198 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 34,097.0% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 11,285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,539,000 after acquiring an additional 11,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis bought a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $896,000.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.