Bank of New York Mellon Corp Acquires Shares of 181,241 AutoNation, Inc. $AN

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon acquired 181,241 AutoNation shares worth approximately $33.7 million, taking a 0.55% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 94.62% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a favorable outlook, with 10 Buy ratings and two Holds producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $250.
• AutoNation beat quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $5.56 versus the $5.48 consensus, although revenue declined 0.6% year over year to $6.93 billion.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 181,241 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $33,673,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.55% of AutoNation at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in AutoNation by 37.4% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 235 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in AutoNation in the third quarter worth $48,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 49.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 259 shares of the company's stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 33.0% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 306 shares of the company's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Monetary Solutions Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the fourth quarter valued at $64,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AN has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $202.00 to $224.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Citigroup boosted their price target on AutoNation from $287.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $248.00 price objective on shares of AutoNation in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on AutoNation from $235.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Argus lifted their target price on AutoNation from $241.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $250.00.

AutoNation Stock Performance

Shares of AutoNation stock opened at $200.35 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $201.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $197.40. The company has a market cap of $6.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.28, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a current ratio of 0.78. AutoNation, Inc. has a one year low of $176.62 and a one year high of $235.81.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $5.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.48 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 31.24%. AutoNation's revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.26 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 21.69 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Lisa Lutoff-Perlo sold 900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $198,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,989 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,757,580. The trade was a 10.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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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