Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Rating Increased to Hold at StockNews.com

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Thursday.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Stephens assumed coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price objective on the stock. Craig Hallum boosted their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $190.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Asbury Automotive Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $257.20.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of ABG traded down $5.03 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $228.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 149,603 shares, compared to its average volume of 184,877. Asbury Automotive Group has a 52 week low of $186.29 and a 52 week high of $277.13. The stock has a market cap of $4.60 billion, a PE ratio of 8.31 and a beta of 1.16. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $229.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $231.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.58 by ($0.23). Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.51% and a return on equity of 17.93%. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $8.12 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group will post 26.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Asbury Automotive Group

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total value of $113,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 56,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,911,548.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Asbury Automotive Group news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total transaction of $113,590.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 56,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,911,548.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Impactive Capital Lp sold 8,353 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.63, for a total transaction of $1,884,687.39. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,008,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $453,211,473.87. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group in the second quarter worth about $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 100.0% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 292 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $155,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $190,000.

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.