Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Sells 323,600 Shares of Autohome Inc. $ATHM

Key Points

• Pictet Asset Management Holding SA sharply reduced its Autohome stake by 77.3% in the first quarter, selling 323,600 shares and ending with 94,900 shares valued at about $1.65 million.
• Autohome insiders also sold shares: CFO Yan Zeng and CTO Bibo Xiang both trimmed holdings in late May, with the sales disclosed as being related to tax withholding from vesting equity awards.
• Analysts have turned more cautious on the stock, with multiple downgrades leaving Autohome with a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average target price of $17.15, while shares recently opened at $18.19.

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA decreased its position in shares of Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM - Free Report) by 77.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 94,900 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 323,600 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned approximately 0.08% of Autohome worth $1,648,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ATHM. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Autohome by 12.2% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,968,365 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $227,497,000 after purchasing an additional 868,151 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd increased its stake in shares of Autohome by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 4,308,693 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $95,912,000 after buying an additional 20,228 shares during the period. M&G PLC increased its stake in shares of Autohome by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. M&G PLC now owns 3,420,121 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $75,243,000 after buying an additional 413,287 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in Autohome by 86.9% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,852,839 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $63,504,000 after buying an additional 1,326,281 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Autohome by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,682,506 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $59,713,000 after buying an additional 39,969 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.08% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Yan Zeng sold 24,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total value of $105,705.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 169,940 shares in the company, valued at $739,239. The trade was a 12.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CTO Bibo Xiang sold 10,508 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.35, for a total transaction of $45,709.80. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 62,368 shares in the company, valued at $271,300.80. This trade represents a 14.42% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 5.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ATHM shares. HSBC cut shares of Autohome from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $17.30 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Autohome from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research cut shares of Autohome from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Autohome from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Autohome from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Autohome presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $17.15.

Autohome Stock Performance

Autohome stock opened at $18.19 on Monday. Autohome Inc. has a 52-week low of $15.57 and a 52-week high of $29.92. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $18.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.65. The firm has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.89 and a beta of 0.23.

Autohome Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. Autohome's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 183.97%.

About Autohome

Autohome Inc NYSE: ATHM operates one of China’s leading online destinations for automobile consumers, offering a comprehensive suite of digital platforms and services throughout the vehicle ownership lifecycle. Headquartered in Beijing, the company’s core website and mobile applications deliver news, reviews, pricing information, photos, videos and interactive tools to help prospective buyers evaluate new and used vehicles. By aggregating rich editorial content with user-generated ratings and expert analyses, Autohome seeks to guide consumers through research, purchase and after-sales decision-making.

In addition to its consumer-facing properties, Autohome provides automakers, dealers and service providers with integrated digital marketing and e-commerce solutions.

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