Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG Shares Sold by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Key Points

• Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund cut its Asbury Automotive Group stake by 24.6% in the first quarter, selling 4,767 shares and ending with 14,617 shares worth about $2.86 million.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” with an average price target of $233.12, though some firms remain positive while others have trimmed targets or issued bearish views.
• Recent results were softer than expected, with Asbury reporting Q1 EPS of $5.37 versus $5.62 expected and revenue of $4.11 billion versus $4.37 billion expected; despite this, an insider director recently bought additional shares.

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lowered its position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 24.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,617 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,767 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned 0.08% of Asbury Automotive Group worth $2,856,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABG. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Quarry LP boosted its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 319.2% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 109 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 52.4% during the 4th quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 128 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 69.2% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 132 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $242.00 target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Barclays dropped their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley set a $220.00 price target on Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $233.12.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of ABG stock opened at $220.40 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The company has a market capitalization of $4.10 billion, a PE ratio of 7.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.74. The firm's 50-day moving average is $198.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $210.19. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $172.01 and a 12 month high of $263.38.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $5.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.62 by ($0.25). The firm had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.37 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.05% and a return on equity of 13.39%. The business's quarterly revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.82 EPS. Analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 25.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, Director B. Christopher Disantis bought 157 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $182.31 per share, with a total value of $28,622.67. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 6,400 shares in the company, valued at $1,166,784. The trade was a 2.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

Asbury Automotive Group Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc NYSE: ABG is one of the largest automotive retailers in the United States. Headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, the company operates a network of franchised dealerships representing a diverse portfolio of automotive brands. Its core business activities include the sale of new and pre-owned vehicles, as well as the provision of vehicle finance, insurance and protection products to retail customers.

In addition to retail sales, Asbury offers a comprehensive suite of after-sales services, from scheduled maintenance and certified collision repair to parts distribution.

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