Sei Investments Co. Boosts Stake in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 0.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,130 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co.’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $2,413,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its stake in AutoNation by 54.1% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 51,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,568,000 after purchasing an additional 18,157 shares during the period. Mutual Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in AutoNation during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,484,000. Sanders Morris Harris LLC purchased a new position in shares of AutoNation in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $828,000. Bridgewater Associates LP increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 107,558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,153,000 after purchasing an additional 18,278 shares during the period. Finally, Diversified Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the second quarter worth approximately $838,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AN opened at $171.01 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $173.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.41. AutoNation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.81 and a 12 month high of $197.18.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by ($0.32). AutoNation had a return on equity of 36.50% and a net margin of 2.93%. The firm had revenue of $6.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of AutoNation from $164.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Stephens began coverage on shares of AutoNation in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded AutoNation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $200.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on AutoNation from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.75.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In other news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.06, for a total transaction of $91,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,825,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $696,441,036.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 53,562 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.06, for a total transaction of $91,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,825,338 shares in the company, valued at approximately $696,441,036.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 216,959 shares of company stock valued at $39,346,744. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Profile

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.