Towle & Co. Cuts Stake in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

Towle & Co. lowered its stake in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 18.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 76,460 shares of the company's stock after selling 17,225 shares during the period. Asbury Automotive Group accounts for 3.2% of Towle & Co.'s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Towle & Co. owned approximately 0.39% of Asbury Automotive Group worth $18,582,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABG. Barclays PLC boosted its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 94.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 38,644 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,220,000 after buying an additional 18,821 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the fourth quarter worth $484,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 839 shares of the company's stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 3,548 shares of the company's stock worth $862,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the fourth quarter worth $221,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $290.00 to $250.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $236.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Craig Hallum lowered shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Asbury Automotive Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $258.50.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Down 0.6%

ABG stock traded down $1.35 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $225.27. The stock had a trading volume of 137,740 shares, compared to its average volume of 201,785. The firm has a market cap of $4.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.47 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $201.68 and a 1-year high of $312.56. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $225.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $248.90.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $6.82 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.84 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 16.29% and a net margin of 2.50%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $7.21 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.