Advent International L.P. Sells 133,813 Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG

Key Points

• Advent International L.P. significantly reduced its stake in Asbury Automotive Group, selling 133,813 shares and lowering its holdings by 98.6% in the first quarter.
• Asbury Automotive Group reported earnings of $7.43 per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates but with revenue of $4.37 billion, slightly below the consensus.
• Analysts have mixed outlooks for Asbury Automotive Group, with price targets ranging from $215.00 to $335.00, reflecting a range of ratings from "buy" to "underweight."

Advent International L.P. decreased its position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 98.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,945 shares of the company's stock after selling 133,813 shares during the period. Asbury Automotive Group makes up 0.0% of Advent International L.P.'s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Advent International L.P.'s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $430,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $262,000. New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 14,846 shares of the company's stock worth $3,279,000 after buying an additional 1,787 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 39.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 586 shares of the company's stock worth $129,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the first quarter valued at about $6,037,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the first quarter worth about $1,111,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on ABG shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of 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 upped their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Cfra set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Stephens upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $277.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Asbury Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Asbury Automotive Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $254.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Juanita T. James sold 625 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.10, for a total value of $152,562.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,855 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,673,305.50. This represents a 8.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jed Milstein sold 1,132 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,957 shares of company stock valued at $745,501 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.59% of the company's stock.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ABG traded down $1.93 on Friday, reaching $257.07. 185,225 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 140,807. The company has a market capitalization of $5.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.39, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.89. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $201.68 and a twelve month high of $312.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The company has a fifty day moving average of $243.05 and a 200-day moving average of $237.30.

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

Asbury Automotive Group Profile

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.