Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) Receives $67.40 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $67.40.

SAH has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stephens assumed coverage on Sonic Automotive in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $64.00 price target for the company. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective 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, Morgan Stanley upgraded Sonic Automotive from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $40.00 to $58.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sonic Automotive

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in Sonic Automotive by 124.7% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 55,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,239,000 after purchasing an additional 30,731 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 418.9% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 21,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,269,000 after acquiring an additional 17,512 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 524.4% in 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 during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 3rd quarter valued at $532,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the 3rd quarter worth $1,244,000. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SAH opened at $63.59 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The stock has a market cap of $2.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.31 and a beta of 1.65. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $63.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.44. Sonic Automotive has a 52 week low of $47.82 and a 52 week high of $70.88.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 analysts’ expectations of $3.55 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.02 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive will post 5.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from Sonic Automotive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is currently 24.91%.

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.