Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) Shares Sold by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV cut its position in shares of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR - Free Report) by 97.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 903 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 30,025 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV's holdings in Avis Budget Group were worth $69,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC increased its position in Avis Budget Group by 2.1% in the first quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 7,623 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $579,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in Avis Budget Group by 41.0% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 681 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in Avis Budget Group by 41.3% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 736 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in Avis Budget Group by 31.8% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 936 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of 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 worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. 96.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Avis Budget Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 3rd. 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. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Avis Budget Group from $100.00 to $87.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Avis Budget Group from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $127.60.

Avis Budget Group Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ CAR traded up $2.20 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $191.39. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,066,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 996,933. The business's 50 day moving average is $132.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.24. Avis Budget Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $54.03 and a 12-month high of $194.94. The firm has a market cap of $6.74 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.04 and a beta of 2.19.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The business services provider reported ($14.35) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($5.72) by ($8.63). The business had revenue of $2.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.49 billion. Avis Budget Group had a negative return on equity of 14.74% and a negative net margin of 18.96%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($3.21) earnings per share. On average, 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.