Walleye Capital LLC Takes $297,000 Position in Sonic Automotive, Inc. $SAH

Key Points

• Walleye Capital LLC has acquired a new stake in Sonic Automotive, purchasing 5,214 shares valued at approximately $297,000.
• Sonic Automotive has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share, reflecting an increase from the previous dividend of $0.35, with a yield of 1.9%.
• The company recently reported a quarterly EPS of $2.19, surpassing analysts' expectations and indicating a 5.9% increase in revenue year-over-year.

Walleye Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 5,214 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $297,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SAH. Mariner LLC bought a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,349 shares of the company's stock valued at $910,000 after buying an additional 973 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in 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 buying an additional 18,232 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 111,738 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,079,000 after buying an additional 5,358 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 83,563 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,294,000 after buying an additional 5,746 shares during the period. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

SAH stock opened at $81.57 on Thursday. 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 business's fifty day simple moving average is $80.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $70.84. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a twelve month low of $52.00 and a twelve month high of $89.62. The firm has a market cap of $2.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.13 and a beta of 0.98.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $2.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 company earned $1.47 EPS. The business's revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.14 earnings per share 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 dividend on an annualized basis 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 currently 31.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on SAH shares. Zacks Research lowered Sonic Automotive from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an "underweight" rating and set a $72.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Sonic Automotive in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Bank of America increased their price target on Sonic Automotive from $80.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Sonic Automotive from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Benchmark increased their target price on Sonic Automotive from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" 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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