Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) Reaches New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $192.67 and last traded at $193.34, with a volume of 985905 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $177.80.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on CAR shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating and set a $196.00 target price (up from $130.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Avis Budget Group from $100.00 to $87.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Avis Budget Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Avis Budget Group from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Avis Budget Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $127.60.

Avis Budget Group Price Performance

The stock's fifty day moving average price is $134.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $99.12. The firm has a market cap of $6.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.04 and a beta of 2.19.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The business services provider reported ($14.35) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($5.72) by ($8.63). Avis Budget Group had a negative net margin of 18.96% and a negative return on equity of 14.74%. The company had revenue of $2.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($3.21) EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Avis Budget Group, Inc. will post 8.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Avis Budget Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Avis Budget Group by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,610,186 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $122,213,000 after buying an additional 46,038 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Avis Budget Group by 93.2% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 490,473 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $39,537,000 after buying an additional 236,576 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in Avis Budget Group by 266.7% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 330,000 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,601,000 after buying an additional 240,000 shares in the last quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Avis Budget Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,747,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Avis Budget Group by 1,391.0% in the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 253,200 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $20,410,000 after buying an additional 236,218 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.35% of the company's stock.

Avis Budget Group Company Profile

Avis Budget Group, Inc engages in the provision of vehicle sharing and rental services. It operates through the following segments: Americas, International, and Corporate and Other. The Americas segment includes the vehicle rental and car sharing operations in North America, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean.