Boothbay Fund Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Boothbay Fund Management LLC lifted its holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Free Report) by 77.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 75,437 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 32,927 shares during the period. Boothbay Fund Management LLC owned approximately 0.19% of AutoNation worth $12,812,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in AutoNation in the 4th quarter worth about $2,120,000. Cartenna Capital LP bought a new position in AutoNation in the 4th quarter worth about $56,831,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. boosted its stake in AutoNation by 422.7% in the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 575,000 shares of the company's stock worth $97,658,000 after purchasing an additional 465,000 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in AutoNation by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 15,517 shares of the company's stock worth $2,636,000 after purchasing an additional 1,473 shares during the period. Finally, Pinebridge Investments L.P. bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,900,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens lifted their price target on AutoNation from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Citigroup upgraded AutoNation to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Guggenheim dropped their target price on AutoNation from $212.00 to $183.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Cfra Research raised AutoNation to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on AutoNation from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AutoNation currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $200.75.

AutoNation Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE AN traded up $1.34 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $175.49. 146,469 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 521,379. AutoNation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $148.33 and a 52 week high of $198.50. The company has a market cap of $6.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.36, a PEG ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.15. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $168.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $172.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.74.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $4.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.35 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $6.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.53 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.59% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.49 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 EPS for the current year.

AutoNation Profile

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.