Petrus Trust Company LTA Invests $364,000 in AutoNation, Inc. $AN

Key Points

• Petrus Trust Company LTA invested approximately $364,000 in AutoNation, purchasing 2,248 shares in the first quarter.
• Institutional investors hold a significant 94.62% of AutoNation's stock, with several firms increasing their holdings dramatically.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for AutoNation, with an average target of $223.25 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Petrus Trust Company LTA purchased a new position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,248 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $364,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Mountain Lake Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 63.0% in the 1st quarter. Mountain Lake Investment Management LLC now owns 49,225 shares of the company's stock worth $7,971,000 after buying an additional 19,025 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of AutoNation in the 1st quarter worth about $2,684,000. Gotham Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 13.6% in the 1st quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 94,653 shares of the company's stock worth $15,326,000 after buying an additional 11,315 shares during the last quarter. Cinctive Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of AutoNation in the 1st quarter worth about $788,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AutoNation by 144.6% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 416,167 shares of the company's stock worth $65,950,000 after buying an additional 245,994 shares during the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of AutoNation from $209.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of AutoNation from $185.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim reduced their price target on shares of AutoNation from $230.00 to $228.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $255.00 to $250.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $195.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $222.63.

AutoNation Stock Performance

NYSE:AN traded down $4.85 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $222.15. The stock had a trading volume of 525,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 377,064. AutoNation, Inc. has a 52 week low of $148.33 and a 52 week high of $228.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $209.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $189.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $5.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.76. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 31.12%. The company had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.99 EPS. AutoNation's revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About AutoNation

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.