Cerity Partners LLC Buys 1,628 Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 36.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,064 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,628 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $1,447,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABG. Citigroup Inc. grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 54,917 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,103,000 after acquiring an additional 10,603 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 3rd quarter worth $1,223,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 36.7% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,126 shares of the company’s stock valued at $984,000 after buying an additional 1,107 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,573,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 22.4% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,380 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,284,000 after purchasing an additional 985 shares during the period.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $265.00 to $260.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Craig Hallum increased their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America reduced their target price on 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. Morgan Stanley raised Asbury Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $190.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Asbury Automotive Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $256.20.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABG opened at $265.39 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 1.20. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $195.09 and a fifty-two week high of $277.13. The firm has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.02 and a beta of 1.18. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $242.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $237.22.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last posted 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 return on equity of 16.51% and a net margin of 2.16%. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $8.12 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 25.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Asbury Automotive Group 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.