Argent Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG

Key Points

• Argent Capital Management LLC significantly reduced its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 71.8%, owning only 4,339 shares after selling 11,061 shares in the second quarter, valuing their holdings at approximately $1,035,000.
• Insider transactions included Director Maureen F. Morrison selling 800 shares, and Director Juanita T. James selling 625 shares, resulting in total insider sales of $745,501 over the last quarter.
• Asbury Automotive Group's stock opened at $240.37 and has a market cap of $4.73 billion, with analysts giving it a consensus target price of $249.00 along with varied buy and hold ratings.

Argent Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 71.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,339 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,061 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC's holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $1,035,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $661,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 30.3% in the 2nd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,597 shares of the company's stock worth $1,335,000 after buying an additional 1,302 shares during the last quarter. eCIO Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $56,000. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $795,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 35.0% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 10,535 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,327,000 after purchasing an additional 2,730 shares during the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, Director Maureen F. Morrison sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.61, for a total value of $204,488.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 5,824 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,488,672.64. This represents a 12.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Juanita T. James sold 625 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.10, for a total value of $152,562.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,855 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,673,305.50. The trade was a 8.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,957 shares of company stock worth $745,501. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock opened at $240.37 on Tuesday. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a one year low of $201.68 and a one year high of $312.56. The stock's fifty day moving average is $240.69 and its 200 day moving average is $235.44. The stock has a market cap of $4.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 1.30.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on ABG shares. Stephens upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $225.00 to $277.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Bank of America cut their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $335.00 to $300.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Cfra set a $225.00 target price on Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Two equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Asbury Automotive Group has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $249.00.

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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