Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Free Report) by 197.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,786 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 10,480 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.'s holdings in AutoNation were worth $2,555,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 25.5% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 315 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 14,737 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,503,000 after purchasing an additional 1,215 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in shares of AutoNation by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,407 shares of the company's stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of AutoNation in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $395,000. Finally, Pinebridge Investments L.P. purchased a new position in shares of AutoNation in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,900,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several brokerages have weighed in on AN. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on AutoNation from $195.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on AutoNation from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Stephens raised their price target on AutoNation from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Bank of America increased their price objective on AutoNation from $225.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on AutoNation from $209.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoNation presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $223.25.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on AutoNation
AutoNation Price Performance
AN stock traded down $2.31 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $220.03. 71,283 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 476,262. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $204.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $186.47. The stock has a market cap of $8.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.79, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.89. AutoNation, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $148.33 and a fifty-two week high of $224.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.81.
AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $5.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.70 by $0.76. The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.77 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.12% and a net margin of 2.31%.AutoNation's revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.99 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current year.
About AutoNation
(
Free Report)
AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.
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