Madison Asset Management LLC Raises Position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

Madison Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 10.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 373,320 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 34,160 shares during the quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC owned approximately 1.90% of Asbury Automotive Group worth $82,444,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 484 shares of the company's stock valued at $117,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,502 shares of the company's stock valued at $608,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 43.9% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 164 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Choreo LLC grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 3,094 shares of the company's stock valued at $683,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 858 shares of the company's stock valued at $189,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Performance

Asbury Automotive Group stock traded up $4.51 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $237.08. 121,145 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 167,277. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $201.68 and a 12-month high of $312.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.96. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $239.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $244.87.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $6.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.84 by ($0.02). Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 15.41% and a net margin of 2.42%. The business had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $7.21 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $236.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $235.00 to $225.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy 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 price target of $259.33.

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.