Northern Trust Corp Lowers Position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp reduced its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 1.7%, owning 234,852 shares worth approximately $51.87 million after selling 4,155 shares in the first quarter.
• Asbury Automotive Group reported $7.43 EPS for the quarter, surpassing estimates and achieving a net margin of 3.13%, with a revenue of $4.37 billion.
• Analysts have given Asbury Automotive Group an average target price of $254.00, with two analysts upgrading the stock to "Buy" and four maintaining a "Hold" rating.

Northern Trust Corp trimmed its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 1.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 234,852 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,155 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.19% of Asbury Automotive Group worth $51,865,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 43.9% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 164 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 4,074 shares of the company's stock valued at $900,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 3,094 shares of the company's stock valued at $683,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,540 shares of the company's stock valued at $782,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 858 shares of the company's stock valued at $189,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ABG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised Asbury Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Cfra set a $225.00 price target on Asbury Automotive Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Bank of America raised their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $254.00.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of ABG stock traded up $1.93 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $253.47. The company's stock had a trading volume of 146,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 154,584. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.89. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a one year low of $201.68 and a one year high of $312.56. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $242.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $238.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $7.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.82 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $4.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 15.41% and a net margin of 3.13%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.40 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Maureen F. Morrison sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.61, for a total value of $204,488.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,824 shares in the company, valued at $1,488,672.64. This trade represents a 12.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Juanita T. James sold 625 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.10, for a total value of $152,562.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,855 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,673,305.50. The trade was a 8.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,957 shares of company stock valued at $745,501 in the last 90 days. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Asbury Automotive Group Company Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.