Graham Capital Management L.P. Purchases 9,623 Shares of Avis Budget Group, Inc. $CAR

Key Points

• Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in Avis Budget Group by 52.3% in the first quarter, now owning approximately 28,013 shares valued at $2.13 million.
• Director Bernardo Hees sold 402,200 shares of Avis Budget Group, resulting in a 77.54% decrease in their position, with shares sold at an average price of $156.59 each.
• Avis Budget Group reported a negative earnings per share of $0.10 for the last quarter, missing analyst expectations by $1.92, and has a negative net margin of 19.06%.

Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR - Free Report) by 52.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 28,013 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 9,623 shares during the period. Graham Capital Management L.P. owned about 0.08% of Avis Budget Group worth $2,126,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Avis Budget Group by 106.9% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 478 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in Avis Budget Group by 421.1% during the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 839 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 678 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 399.5% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 909 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 727 shares during the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new position in Avis Budget Group in the first quarter worth approximately $104,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Avis Budget Group in the first quarter worth approximately $112,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.35% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CAR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $113.00 target price (down from $120.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Barclays boosted their price target on Avis Budget Group from $105.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $196.00 price objective (up previously from $130.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "sell" rating and set a $105.00 price objective (up from $87.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Friday, August 1st. One research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $143.80.

Avis Budget Group Trading Down 0.2%

CAR traded down $0.25 on Friday, hitting $156.28. 494,519 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 873,001. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $172.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $122.25. Avis Budget Group, Inc. has a one year low of $54.03 and a one year high of $212.81. The firm has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.47 and a beta of 2.12.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 analysts' expectations of $3.02 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.41 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Avis Budget Group, Inc. will post 8.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Edward P. Linnen sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.83, for a total value of $1,568,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 40,915 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,416,699.45. The trade was a 19.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,246,023.39. The trade was a 77.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 52.80% of the company's stock.

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.