Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 32,724 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. $AN

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management cut its AutoNation stake by 92.2% in Q4, selling 32,724 shares and leaving 2,766 shares valued at about $571,000.
• Institutional ownership of AutoNation stands at roughly 94.62%, and several other funds recently initiated or increased positions in the company.
• Wall Street has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $248.67; recent analyst moves include JPMorgan upgrading to Overweight and Bank of America initiating coverage with a Buy.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. trimmed its position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Free Report) by 92.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,766 shares of the company's stock after selling 32,724 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in AutoNation were worth $571,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. bought a new position in shares of AutoNation in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,140,000. Simcoe Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in AutoNation during the third quarter worth approximately $18,988,000. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AutoNation during the third quarter worth approximately $1,401,000. Davis Capital Management purchased a new stake in AutoNation during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,024,000. Finally, 44 Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in AutoNation during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,378,000. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings cut AutoNation from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded AutoNation from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $235.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 16th. Stephens raised their price target on AutoNation from $228.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $222.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Sunday, February 8th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of AutoNation in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AutoNation currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $248.67.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of AutoNation stock opened at $197.74 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $198.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $206.32. The company has a market capitalization of $6.79 billion, a PE ratio of 11.59 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39. AutoNation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $148.33 and a 52 week high of $228.92.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The company reported $5.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.91 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $6.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.21 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.69% and a net margin of 2.35%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.97 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current year.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc is the largest automotive retailer in the United States, operating a network of franchised new vehicle dealerships, pre-owned vehicle superstores and collision-repair centers. The company offers a comprehensive range of automotive products and services, including the sale of new cars and light trucks from leading manufacturers, certified pre-owned vehicles and a wide selection of used models. In addition to retail vehicle sales, AutoNation provides financing, insurance and extended service contracts through its in-house financial services division, as well as genuine and aftermarket parts, factory-recommended maintenance and collision-repair services.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H.

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