Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Sells 203,917 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Free Report) by 81.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 45,624 shares of the company's stock after selling 203,917 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.12% of AutoNation worth $7,387,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AN. Curat Global LLC acquired a new position in AutoNation in the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 25.5% during 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 in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 81.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 460 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 77.1% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 494 shares of the company's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in AutoNation by 56.8% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the company's stock worth $136,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.62% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised AutoNation from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 10th. Cfra Research raised AutoNation to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on AutoNation from $194.00 to $176.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Citigroup raised AutoNation to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on AutoNation from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Three 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $200.75.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of AN traded down $2.70 on Friday, reaching $189.26. 267,220 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 462,006. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $7.14 billion, a PE ratio of 11.17, a PEG ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.99. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $178.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $177.14. AutoNation, Inc. has a 52-week low of $148.33 and a 52-week high of $198.50.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $4.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.35 by $0.33. AutoNation had a return on equity of 30.48% and a net margin of 2.59%. The business had revenue of $6.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.49 earnings per share. AutoNation's revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AutoNation Profile

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.