Public Sector Pension Investment Board Raises Position in Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Sonic Automotive, Inc. by 26.7%, owning approximately 46,335 shares valued at around $2.64 million.
• Sonic Automotive will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.38, an increase from the previous $0.35, with a dividend yield of 1.9% on an annualized basis.
• The company reported a Q2 EPS of $2.19, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.63, alongside a revenue of $3.66 billion, marking a 5.9% year-over-year increase.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH - Free Report) by 26.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 46,335 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,769 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned approximately 0.14% of Sonic Automotive worth $2,639,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Mariner LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Cetera Investment Advisers purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the first quarter valued at approximately $218,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $242,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $261,000. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, President Jeff Dyke sold 576 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $40,331.52. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 605,393 shares of the company's stock, valued at $42,389,617.86. The trade was a 0.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 50,000 shares of company stock worth $3,502,062. Insiders own 42.65% of the company's stock.

Sonic Automotive Trading Up 1.8%

NYSE:SAH opened at $79.7350 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 12 month low of $52.00 and a 12 month high of $89.62. The company has a market cap of $2.72 billion, a PE ratio of 17.72 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $79.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.20.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $2.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.56. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.07% and a return on equity of 21.40%. The business had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.47 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.38 dividend. This is a boost from Sonic Automotive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Sonic Automotive's payout ratio is presently 31.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $72.00 target price (up from $65.00) on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $80.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Stephens downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $72.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $64.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Sonic Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sonic Automotive has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $79.86.

Sonic Automotive Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.

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