Aristeia Capital L.L.C. Purchases Shares of 4,172 Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH

Key Points

• Aristeia Capital L.L.C. has made a new investment in Sonic Automotive, acquiring 4,172 shares valued at approximately $238,000 during the first quarter.
• Sonic Automotive recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.35 to $0.38 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 1.8%.
• Several analysts have adjusted their price targets for Sonic Automotive, with Bank of America raising its target from $80.00 to $94.00, while Zacks downgraded the company from a "strong-buy" to a "hold" rating.

Aristeia Capital L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 4,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $238,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SAH. Northern Trust Corp lifted 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 valued at $18,443,000 after purchasing an additional 18,232 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 111,738 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,079,000 after purchasing an additional 5,358 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 83,563 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,294,000 after purchasing an additional 5,746 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Sonic Automotive during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,341,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 55.7% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 24,139 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,529,000 after purchasing an additional 8,636 shares during the last quarter. 46.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Stephens downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $72.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $72.00 target price (up from $65.00) on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price 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 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 given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $79.86.

Sonic Automotive Trading Down 3.9%

Shares of NYSE:SAH traded down $3.20 during trading on Friday, hitting $79.77. 153,745 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 224,256. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.00 and a 1-year high of $89.62. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $80.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. The firm has a market cap of $2.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.73 and a beta of 0.98.

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

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This is a boost from Sonic Automotive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Sonic Automotive's payout ratio is currently 33.78%.

Sonic Automotive Company 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.