Strs Ohio Makes New Investment in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. $ABG

Key Points

• Strs Ohio has invested approximately $795,000 in Asbury Automotive Group by acquiring 3,600 shares in the first quarter.
• Asbury Automotive's stock is currently trading at $241.23 with a recent EPS of $7.43, exceeding analysts' expectations of $6.82.
• Equity analysts have mixed ratings on Asbury, with two Buy ratings, four Hold ratings, and one Sell rating, and an average price target of $249.00.

Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 3,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $795,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the first quarter worth approximately $262,000. New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 13.7% during the first quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 14,846 shares of the company's stock worth $3,279,000 after purchasing an additional 1,787 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 39.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 586 shares of the company's stock worth $129,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 5.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 106,948 shares of the company's stock worth $23,619,000 after purchasing an additional 5,468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the first quarter worth approximately $6,037,000.

Insider Activity at Asbury Automotive Group

In other news, SVP Dean Calloway sold 400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.40, for a total transaction of $101,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 5,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,347,048. This trade represents a 7.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Maureen F. Morrison sold 800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.61, for a total transaction of $204,488.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,488,672.64. This trade represents a 12.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,957 shares of company stock worth $745,501 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

Asbury Automotive Group Price Performance

Asbury Automotive Group stock traded down $1.32 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $239.88. 46,747 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 195,246. The firm has a market cap of $4.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $241.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $235.54. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $201.68 and a 1-year high of $312.56.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $7.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.82 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $4.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.44 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 3.13% and a return on equity of 15.41%. Asbury Automotive Group's quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.40 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ABG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $335.00 to $300.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $225.00 to $215.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Stephens upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $277.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Cfra set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $249.00.

Asbury Automotive Group 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.