Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG Shares Sold by Invesco Ltd.

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. reduced its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 3.9%, now owning 177,151 shares valued at approximately $39.1 million.
• Asbury Automotive Group reported earnings of $7.43 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $6.82, while quarterly revenue rose by 3.0% year-over-year.
• Bank of America has upgraded its price target for Asbury Automotive Group from $325.00 to $335.00 and assigned a "buy" rating to the stock.

Invesco Ltd. decreased its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 177,151 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,284 shares during the quarter. Invesco Ltd. owned 0.90% of Asbury Automotive Group worth $39,122,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ABG. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,279 shares of the company's stock worth $2,984,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,502 shares of the company's stock worth $608,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 801.4% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 631 shares of the company's stock worth $153,000 after acquiring an additional 561 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC boosted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 1,856 shares of the company's stock worth $451,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $247,000.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

Shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock traded up $13.24 during trading on Friday, hitting $253.38. 187,133 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 222,778. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $201.68 and a fifty-two week high of $312.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $239.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $240.38.

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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.82 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $4.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 15.41% and a net margin of 3.13%.Asbury Automotive Group's revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.40 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Cfra set a $225.00 price objective on Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded 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 assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Asbury Automotive Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $254.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, Director Juanita T. James sold 625 shares of the business's 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 transaction, the director directly owned 6,855 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,673,305.50. The trade was a 8.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.59% of the company's stock.

Asbury Automotive Group Company 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.