Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Trading Down 6.4% - Time to Sell?

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 6.4% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $233.18 and last traded at $232.16. 43,958 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 196,323 shares. The stock had previously closed at $248.11.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ABG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $235.00 to $225.00 in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Bank of America raised their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $236.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Asbury Automotive Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $259.33.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The company has a market cap of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.02, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $239.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $245.08.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $6.82 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.84 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 15.41% and a net margin of 2.42%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $7.21 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 4th quarter worth about $82,079,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the fourth quarter worth $51,118,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 30,639.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 129,412 shares of the company's stock valued at $285,790,000 after purchasing an additional 128,991 shares in the last quarter. Eminence Capital LP lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 787,775 shares of the company's stock worth $191,453,000 after acquiring an additional 107,317 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 49.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 278,760 shares of the company's stock valued at $61,561,000 after buying an additional 91,767 shares during the period.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.