6,965 Shares in AutoNation, Inc. $AN Bought by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired 6,965 shares of AutoNation, Inc. valued at approximately $1,384,000, indicating growing institutional interest in the company.
• A number of analysts have recently changed their ratings for AutoNation; Citigroup reiterated a "buy," while JPMorgan Chase raised their target price from $185.00 to $205.00, portraying varied sentiments among analysts.
• In its last quarter, AutoNation reported an EPS of $5.46, surpassing estimates and showing a year-over-year revenue increase of 7.6% with total revenues reaching $6.97 billion.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 6,965 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,384,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in AutoNation by 37.4% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 235 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in AutoNation by 0.9% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 7,580 shares of the company's stock worth $1,227,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in AutoNation by 1.6% in the first quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 4,918 shares of the company's stock worth $796,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AutoNation by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,223 shares of the company's stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ethic Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 1.9% during the first quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 4,635 shares of the company's stock valued at $761,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of AutoNation in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on AutoNation from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on AutoNation from $230.00 to $228.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on AutoNation from $195.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded AutoNation from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $222.63.

AutoNation Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of AN opened at $217.50 on Friday. AutoNation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $148.33 and a 52-week high of $228.92. The company has a market capitalization of $8.20 billion, a PE ratio of 13.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.89. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $211.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $192.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $5.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.76. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.12% and a net margin of 2.31%.The business had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.77 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.99 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 EPS for the current year.

About AutoNation

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.

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