Vanguard Group Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in 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. trimmed its position in shares of 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 (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,536,561 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,783 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 4.52% of Sonic Automotive worth $87,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 38.2% during the 1st quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 14,286 shares of the company's stock valued at $814,000 after purchasing an additional 3,952 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 266.1% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,096 shares of the company's stock valued at $803,000 after purchasing an additional 10,246 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6,802.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 11,734 shares of the company's stock valued at $668,000 after purchasing an additional 11,564 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 291,133 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,443,000 after purchasing an additional 18,232 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,940,000. 46.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of SAH stock traded down $2.54 on Friday, hitting $81.79. 137,930 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 209,095. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $80.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a PE ratio of 18.18 and a beta of 0.99. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a twelve month low of $52.00 and a twelve month high of $89.62.

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

Sonic Automotive Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 31.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SAH. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Sonic Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 21st. Stephens cut shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $72.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $79.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sonic Automotive

In other news, President Jeff Dyke sold 576 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 0.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 42.65% of the company's stock.

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.