13,633 Shares in Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH Purchased by Jump Financial LLC

Key Points

• Jump Financial LLC acquired 13,633 shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. valued at approximately $777,000, expanding its position in the automotive retailer during Q1.
• Sonic Automotive recently reported earnings of $2.19 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.63 and showing a revenue growth of 5.9% year-over-year.
• The company announced an increased quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share, with a payout ratio of 31.11%, to be paid on October 15th to stockholders of record.

Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 13,633 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $777,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mariner LLC acquired a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the fourth quarter valued at $225,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 9,104 shares of the company's stock valued at $577,000 after buying an additional 731 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,349 shares of the company's stock worth $910,000 after acquiring an additional 973 shares during the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Sonic Automotive during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $261,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 291,133 shares of the company's stock worth $18,443,000 after purchasing an additional 18,232 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.92% of the company's stock.

Sonic Automotive Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE SAH traded up $0.98 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $82.60. 68,217 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 225,794. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.84. The stock has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.35 and a beta of 0.98. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.00 and a 1-year high of $89.62.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $2.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.56. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 21.40% and a net margin of 1.07%.The firm had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.47 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This is an increase from Sonic Automotive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Sonic Automotive's payout ratio is 31.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SAH has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered Sonic Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. Stephens cut Sonic Automotive from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $72.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an "underweight" rating and set a $72.00 price target (up from $65.00) on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $79.86.

About Sonic Automotive

Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.