Insider Selling: AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) Major Shareholder Sells 39,194 Shares of Stock

AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 39,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.43, for a total transaction of $7,189,355.42. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,786,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $694,492,393.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

AutoNation Price Performance

AN traded down $3.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $179.34. The company had a trading volume of 161,883 shares, compared to its average volume of 420,769. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a market capitalization of $7.22 billion, a PE ratio of 8.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.21. AutoNation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.81 and a twelve month high of $197.18. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $169.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $162.81.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.31 by ($0.32). The company had revenue of $6.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 36.50%. The company’s revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.29 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoNation

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. First United Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in AutoNation by 90.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $169.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $164.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $187.71.

About AutoNation

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.