Insider Selling: Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) CEO Sells $237,181.23 in Stock

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) CEO David Bruton Smith sold 3,861 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.43, for a total value of $237,181.23. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 583,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,817,007.22. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Sonic Automotive Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:SAH opened at $56.43 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.42. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 52 week low of $39.02 and a 52 week high of $64.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 1.09. The company has a market cap of $1.92 billion, a PE ratio of 11.56 and a beta of 1.75.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.06. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 27.46% and a net margin of 1.21%. The company had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. TheStreet upgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Sonic Automotive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $48.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded Sonic Automotive from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $55.00 to $68.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sonic Automotive has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $56.60.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Sonic Automotive in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $135,000. Olympiad Research LP acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the third quarter worth $214,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive during the third quarter worth $443,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in Sonic Automotive by 140.4% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 17,892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $855,000 after purchasing an additional 10,450 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 381,211 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,207,000 after purchasing an additional 16,117 shares in the last quarter. 46.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

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.