Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Decreases Position in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its position in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH - Free Report) by 19.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,820 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,048 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Sonic Automotive were worth $958,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Sonic Automotive by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 25,935 shares of the company's stock worth $1,643,000 after buying an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 71,051 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,501,000 after purchasing an additional 2,212 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 54.4% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 45,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,851,000 after buying an additional 15,849 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Sonic Automotive by 111.2% during the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 87,100 shares of the company's stock worth $5,518,000 after purchasing an additional 45,857 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Sonic Automotive by 515.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 480 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the period. 46.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on SAH. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Sonic Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $64.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $80.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Sonic Automotive from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on Sonic Automotive from $93.00 to $74.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Sonic Automotive presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $74.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonic Automotive

In other Sonic Automotive news, President Jeff Dyke sold 16,434 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.03, for a total transaction of $1,150,873.02. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 638,959 shares in the company, valued at $44,746,298.77. This represents a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 50,000 shares of company stock worth $3,502,062 in the last quarter. 42.65% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Sonic Automotive Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE SAH traded up $0.77 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $78.39. 55,771 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 194,065. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.66 billion, a PE ratio of 11.17, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 1.09. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 1-year low of $51.27 and a 1-year high of $79.69. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $67.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.34.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.47 billion. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 19.42% and a net margin of 1.69%. The business's revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.36 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. Sonic Automotive's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.94%.

About Sonic Automotive

Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.