AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Coverage Initiated at Citigroup

Citigroup started coverage on shares of AutoNation (NYSE:AN) in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $217.00 price objective on the stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on AN. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $194.00 to $176.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $212.00 to $183.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Stephens boosted their price target on AutoNation from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered AutoNation from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $200.75.

AutoNation Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of AN stock opened at $175.14 on Wednesday. AutoNation has a 12-month low of $148.33 and a 12-month high of $198.50. The company has a market capitalization of $6.87 billion, a PE ratio of 10.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $169.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $172.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $4.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.35 by $0.33. AutoNation had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.59%. The business had revenue of $6.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.49 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that AutoNation will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AutoNation

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AN. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoNation by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in AutoNation by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 7,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,227,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in AutoNation by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,290 shares of the company’s stock valued at $219,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC lifted its holdings in AutoNation by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 3,472 shares of the company’s stock worth $590,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in shares of AutoNation by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 11,171 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,897,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.