HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Purchases Shares of 2,281 AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 2,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $369,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Realta Investment Advisors grew its holdings in AutoNation by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Realta Investment Advisors now owns 1,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $212,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 4,061 shares of the company’s stock worth $610,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of AutoNation by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd boosted its holdings in AutoNation by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 5,873 shares of the company’s stock valued at $882,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC grew its position in AutoNation by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 6,583 shares of the company’s stock valued at $989,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Trading Down 3.6 %

NYSE AN opened at $161.76 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $6.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.67, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $164.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. AutoNation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $123.81 and a 52 week high of $182.08.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.49 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 3.41% and a return on equity of 42.44%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.05 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AutoNation declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Friday, April 26th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 14.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of AutoNation from $153.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $142.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of AutoNation from $169.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on AutoNation from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $183.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AutoNation news, Director David B. Edelson sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.00, for a total value of $1,680,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 48,793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,197,224. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Company 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.