Deutsche Bank AG Has $771,000 Stake in Avis Budget Group, Inc. $CAR

Key Points

• Deutsche Bank AG has reduced its stake in Avis Budget Group, Inc. by 41.4%, selling 7,175 shares and reducing its holdings to 10,158 shares valued at $771,000.
• Institutional investors hold approximately 96.35% of Avis Budget Group's stock, with notable increases in positions by firms like Nomura Holdings and Jefferies Financial Group in the previous quarter.
• Avis Budget Group's recent quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $0.10, missing expectations, and highlighted a negative return on equity of 14.74%.

Deutsche Bank AG trimmed its position in Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR - Free Report) by 41.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,158 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 7,175 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG's holdings in Avis Budget Group were worth $771,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in Avis Budget Group by 106.9% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 478 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Avis Budget Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $104,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Avis Budget Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Ethic Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Avis Budget Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Avis Budget Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $221,000. 96.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Avis Budget Group

In related news, Director Bernardo Hees sold 402,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total value of $62,980,498.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 116,521 shares in the company, valued at $18,246,023.39. This represents a 77.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Edward P. Linnen sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.83, for a total transaction of $1,568,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 40,915 shares in the company, valued at $6,416,699.45. This represents a 19.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 52.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CAR. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "sell" rating and set a $105.00 price target (up previously from $87.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a report on Friday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating and set a $196.00 price target (up from $130.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Avis Budget Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 3rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Avis Budget Group from $105.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $143.80.

Avis Budget Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CAR traded down $0.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $158.23. 521,759 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,033,464. The company has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.50 and a beta of 2.12. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $173.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $119.99. Avis Budget Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.03 and a twelve month high of $212.81.

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