Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) Holdings Cut by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lowered its position in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 11,449 shares of the company’s stock after selling 892 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Sonic Automotive were worth $670,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 3.7% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 12,806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $730,000 after acquiring an additional 458 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in Sonic Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. TrueMark Investments LLC purchased a new position in Sonic Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $917,000. AM Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 2nd quarter valued at $82,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 524.4% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 100,602 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,480,000 after acquiring an additional 84,489 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.92% of the company’s stock.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

Shares of Sonic Automotive stock opened at $68.28 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.30 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a twelve month low of $47.82 and a twelve month high of $70.88.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by ($0.17). Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 21.27% and a net margin of 1.41%. The business had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.55 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.02 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 5.6 EPS for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This is an increase from Sonic Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is presently 21.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. 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 report on Wednesday, September 25th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $64.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $67.00 to $66.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sonic Automotive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.40.

About Sonic Automotive

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.