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

Key Points

• WINTON GROUP Ltd cut its Asbury Automotive Group stake by 94.8% in the second quarter, selling 23,924 shares and retaining 1,300 shares valued at approximately $261,000.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Seaport upgraded ABG to “buy” with a $300 target, while the broader analyst consensus is “Hold” with a $237.83 price target.
• ABG shares opened at $187.81, down 3.8%, while the company’s latest quarterly results exceeded EPS expectations at $6.82 but missed revenue estimates, reporting $4.38 billion.

WINTON GROUP Ltd reduced its stake in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 94.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,300 shares of the company's stock after selling 23,924 shares during the quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd's holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $261,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,937 shares of the company's stock valued at $450,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,777 shares of the company's stock worth $878,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Abel Hall LLC boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 9.0% during the first quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 1,222 shares of the company's stock worth $239,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 2,820 shares of the company's stock valued at $656,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 263.3% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 178 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on ABG. Seaport Research Partners raised Asbury Automotive Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $300.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. UBS Group set a $250.00 target price on Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $242.00 price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Asbury Automotive Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $237.83.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Jed Milstein sold 948 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.28, for a total transaction of $237,265.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,259 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,817,902.52. The trade was a 7.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Down 3.8%

Shares of NYSE ABG opened at $187.81 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.02, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $172.01 and a 12-month high of $258.74. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $215.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $203.88.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $6.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.31 by $0.51. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 12.72% and a net margin of 2.83%.The firm had revenue of $4.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.49 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $7.43 EPS. Asbury Automotive Group's revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc is a U.S.-based automotive retailer that sells new and used vehicles through a network of franchised dealerships. The company represents a range of domestic, import and luxury automotive brands and serves consumers in multiple markets across the United States.

In addition to vehicle sales, Asbury provides automotive maintenance and repair services, replacement parts, collision repair and other dealership-related services. Its dealerships also offer financing and insurance products, vehicle protection plans and digital tools designed to support vehicle purchasing and ownership.

Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Duluth, Georgia, Asbury has expanded through acquisitions as well as the development of its dealership portfolio.

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