AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) Stock Holdings Lowered by Louisiana State Employees Retirement System

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System reduced its holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 8.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,900 shares of the company’s stock after selling 600 shares during the quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $1,100,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. First United Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of AutoNation in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in AutoNation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in AutoNation during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new position in AutoNation during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in AutoNation by 90.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on AN shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $164.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of AutoNation from $169.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of AutoNation from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of AutoNation from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of AutoNation from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.71.

AutoNation Price Performance

NYSE AN opened at $179.34 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $169.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $162.81. The company has a market cap of $7.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.21. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.81 and a 1 year high of $197.18.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by ($0.32). AutoNation had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 36.50%. The company had revenue of $6.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.72 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.29 earnings per share. AutoNation’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.67 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AutoNation

In other news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 23,703 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.29, for a total transaction of $4,083,789.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,980,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $685,794,659.43. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 53,562 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.45, for a total transaction of $10,361,568.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,825,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $740,108,361.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 23,703 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.29, for a total transaction of $4,083,789.87. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,980,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $685,794,659.43. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 216,959 shares of company stock valued at $39,346,744 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

About AutoNation

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.