UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Makes New $1.58 Million Investment in Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH

Key Points

• UniSuper Management Pty Ltd purchased 27,683 shares of Sonic Automotive valued at approximately $1.58 million in the first quarter, increasing the total institutional ownership to 46.92%.
• Sonic Automotive's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $2.19, surpassing estimates, with revenue of $3.66 billion, up 5.9% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.35 to $0.38, resulting in a dividend yield of 1.9%.

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 27,683 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,577,000. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd owned 0.08% of Sonic Automotive as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 38.2% during the first quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 14,286 shares of the company's stock valued at $814,000 after buying an additional 3,952 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 266.1% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,096 shares of the company's stock valued at $803,000 after buying an additional 10,246 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6,802.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 11,734 shares of the company's stock valued at $668,000 after buying an additional 11,564 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 23.0% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 25,341 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,443,000 after buying an additional 4,745 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 291,133 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,443,000 after buying an additional 18,232 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 46.92% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Stephens downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $72.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Benchmark increased their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $80.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $79.86.

Sonic Automotive Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of SAH stock traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $79.18. The company's stock had a trading volume of 180,468 shares, compared to its average volume of 166,002. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $79.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $71.54. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 12-month low of $52.00 and a 12-month high of $89.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a PE ratio of 17.60 and a beta of 0.98.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.56. The business had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.66 billion. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.07% and a return on equity of 21.40%. The business's revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.47 EPS. On average, research analysts predict 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 issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This is a positive change from Sonic Automotive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Sonic Automotive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.78%.

Sonic Automotive Profile

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.