Millennium Management LLC Buys 16,556 Shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH)

Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) by 3.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 456,588 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,556 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC owned approximately 1.35% of Sonic Automotive worth $24,870,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the second quarter worth approximately $82,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd grew its position in Sonic Automotive by 6.9% during the second quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 2,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $158,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the second quarter worth approximately $228,000. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Sonic Automotive

In other news, CFO Heath Byrd sold 19,827 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $1,189,620.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 173,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,417,080. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 40.95% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

Sonic Automotive stock opened at $55.40 on Friday. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $41.19 and a fifty-two week high of $64.68. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $58.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market cap of $1.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.34 and a beta of 1.61.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.09. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.35% and a return on equity of 25.31%. The firm had revenue of $3.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.17%. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is 24.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SAH. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Sonic Automotive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $40.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $68.00 to $67.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Needham & Company LLC began coverage on Sonic Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Sonic Automotive from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Stephens started coverage on Sonic Automotive in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $64.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sonic Automotive presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.50.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.