Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 20,783 Shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in Sonic Automotive, selling 20,783 shares, and now holds approximately 4.52% of the company, worth around $87.5 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase, now set at $0.38 per share, with a dividend yield of 1.9%.
• Research analysts have varied ratings for Sonic Automotive, with a consensus price target of $79.86 and the stock currently rated as a "Moderate Buy."

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its holdings in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,536,561 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,783 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 4.52% of Sonic Automotive worth $87,523,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SAH. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 21,870 shares of the company's stock worth $1,385,000 after acquiring an additional 2,968 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in Sonic Automotive by 50.8% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 36,807 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,332,000 after buying an additional 12,394 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the 4th quarter valued at about $225,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the 4th quarter valued at about $242,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the 4th quarter valued at about $51,000. 46.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SAH has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Sonic Automotive from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Stephens downgraded Sonic Automotive from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $72.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Sonic Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 21st. Finally, Benchmark lifted their price target on Sonic Automotive from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $79.86.

Insider Transactions at Sonic Automotive

In other news, President Jeff Dyke sold 576 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $40,331.52. Following the transaction, the president owned 605,393 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $42,389,617.86. This represents a 0.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 42.65% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

Sonic Automotive stock traded down $0.95 during trading on Thursday, hitting $83.63. The stock had a trading volume of 51,419 shares, compared to its average volume of 226,547. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 1 year low of $52.00 and a 1 year high of $89.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. The stock's 50 day moving average is $79.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.53. The stock has a market cap of $2.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.58 and a beta of 0.99.

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

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This is a positive change from Sonic Automotive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Sonic Automotive's payout ratio is presently 31.11%.

Sonic Automotive Company 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.