Victory Capital Management Inc. Purchases 18,425 Shares of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR)

Key Points

• Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Avis Budget Group by 166.0% during the first quarter, holding 29,527 shares valued at approximately $2.24 million.
• Avis Budget Group reported a significant earnings miss with a loss of ($14.35) EPS for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of ($5.72), reflecting a negative net margin of 18.96% and a revenue decline of 4.7% year-over-year.
• Investment analysts have mixed views on the stock, with Goldman Sachs lowering its target price to $87.00, while Deutsche Bank upgraded its price objective to $196.00, indicating varied confidence in the company's future performance.

Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR - Free Report) by 166.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 29,527 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 18,425 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.08% of Avis Budget Group worth $2,241,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CAR. Steadfast Capital Management LP bought a new position in Avis Budget Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,747,000. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in Avis Budget Group by 266.7% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 330,000 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,601,000 after acquiring an additional 240,000 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Avis Budget Group by 93.2% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 490,473 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $39,537,000 after buying an additional 236,576 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Avis Budget Group by 1,391.0% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 253,200 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $20,410,000 after buying an additional 236,218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Avis Budget Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,234,000. Institutional investors own 96.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on CAR. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating and set a $196.00 target price (up previously from $130.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "sell" rating and set a $105.00 target price (up previously from $87.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $155.00 target price on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Avis Budget Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $131.20.

Avis Budget Group Trading Down 3.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:CAR traded down $5.85 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $164.39. The company had a trading volume of 453,662 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,301,643. The firm has a market cap of $5.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.60 and a beta of 2.19. The company's 50-day moving average price is $159.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $109.84. Avis Budget Group, Inc. has a one year low of $54.03 and a one year high of $212.81.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.02 by ($1.92). The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.02 billion. Avis Budget Group had a negative return on equity of 14.74% and a negative net margin of 19.06%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.41 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Avis Budget Group, Inc. will post 8.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Avis Budget Group

Avis Budget Group, Inc engages in the provision of vehicle sharing and rental services. It operates through the following segments: Americas, International, and Corporate and Other. The Americas segment includes the vehicle rental and car sharing operations in North America, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean.