2,771 Shares in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG Bought by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management acquired 2,771 shares of Asbury Automotive Group, valued at approximately $661,000, signaling confidence in the company's performance.
• Several hedge funds have modified their positions in Asbury Automotive Group, with Versant Capital Management increasing its holdings by 43.9% in the first quarter.
• Wall Street analysts maintain a mixed outlook on ABG, with consensus ratings suggesting a "Hold" and price targets ranging from $215.00 to $300.00 for the stock.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,771 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $661,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 43.9% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 164 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the first quarter worth about $49,000. eCIO Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the first quarter worth about $56,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 39.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 586 shares of the company's stock worth $129,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC increased its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 7.5% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 858 shares of the company's stock valued at $189,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on ABG. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Thursday. Stephens raised Asbury Automotive Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $277.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Cfra set a $225.00 price objective on Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $335.00 to $300.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Asbury Automotive Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $249.00.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of ABG opened at $238.77 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $240.76 and its 200-day moving average is $235.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.69 billion, a PE ratio of 8.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $201.68 and a 12 month high of $312.56.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $7.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.82 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $4.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 15.41%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.40 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Maureen F. Morrison sold 800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.61, for a total value of $204,488.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,824 shares in the company, valued at $1,488,672.64. The trade was a 12.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jed Milstein sold 1,132 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.26, for a total transaction of $286,690.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,267 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,853,480.42. The trade was a 9.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,957 shares of company stock worth $745,501 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.59% of the company's stock.

About Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.

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