AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) Director Sells $1,680,000.00 in Stock

AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) Director David B. Edelson sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.00, for a total transaction of $1,680,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 48,793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,197,224. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of AN stock opened at $162.85 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $6.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $155.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $145.42. AutoNation, Inc. has a one year low of $123.81 and a one year high of $182.08.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.49 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 3.41% and a return on equity of 42.44%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.05 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.73 EPS for the current year.

AutoNation announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Friday, April 26th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 14.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AN. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of AutoNation from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $153.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of AutoNation in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $185.00 price target for the company. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AutoNation has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.38.

Institutional Trading of AutoNation

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in AutoNation by 31.8% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 754,956 shares of the company’s stock valued at $114,300,000 after acquiring an additional 181,942 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its position in shares of AutoNation by 47.0% in the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 342,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,491,000 after purchasing an additional 109,571 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of AutoNation by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 300,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,203,000 after purchasing an additional 1,166 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of AutoNation in the fourth quarter valued at about $42,748,000. Finally, Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of AutoNation by 1.8% in the first quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 267,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,317,000 after purchasing an additional 4,720 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Company 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.