AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• AutoNation, Inc. has received an average analyst rating of "Moderate Buy", with six analysts recommending buying the stock and one giving it a strong buy rating.
• The company's quarterly earnings exceeded expectations, reporting $5.46 EPS compared to an estimate of $4.70, and revenues increased by 7.6% year-over-year.
• A number of institutional investors have shown significant interest in AutoNation, with hedge funds owning 94.62% of the company's stock after notable increases in their stakes.

AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the ten brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $222.6250.

Several research analysts recently commented on AN shares. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of AutoNation from $255.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $195.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $209.00 to $221.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of AutoNation in a research note on Saturday, September 27th.

AutoNation Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE AN opened at $224.54 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84. The firm has a market cap of $8.47 billion, a PE ratio of 14.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $213.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $194.23. AutoNation has a 52 week low of $148.33 and a 52 week high of $228.92.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $5.46 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.70 by $0.76. The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.77 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 31.12%. AutoNation's revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.99 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that AutoNation will post 18.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AN. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in AutoNation by 29,224.0% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 74,483 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,060,000 after purchasing an additional 74,229 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 80,738 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,073,000 after acquiring an additional 6,169 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 133,300.0% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,334 shares of the company's stock valued at $216,000 after acquiring an additional 1,333 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 183.1% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,723 shares of the company's stock valued at $603,000 after acquiring an additional 2,408 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Curat Global LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company's stock.

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.

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