National Bank of Canada FI Has $54.45 Million Position in Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR)

National Bank of Canada FI cut its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR - Free Report) by 24.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 310,000 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 100,071 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned approximately 0.86% of Avis Budget Group worth $54,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Avis Budget Group during the third quarter valued at $62,892,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of Avis Budget Group by 1,573.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 362,965 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $64,799,000 after purchasing an additional 341,269 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in shares of Avis Budget Group by 63.1% in the third quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 289,648 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $52,047,000 after purchasing an additional 112,073 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV acquired a new stake in shares of Avis Budget Group during the third quarter worth approximately $16,172,000. Finally, JS Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Avis Budget Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $12,578,000. 96.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Avis Budget Group Price Performance

CAR traded up $1.83 on Friday, hitting $115.60. The company had a trading volume of 1,058,913 shares, compared to its average volume of 903,108. The stock has a market cap of $4.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 2.28. The company's fifty day moving average price is $111.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $150.15. Avis Budget Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $93.53 and a 1-year high of $244.95.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported ($3.21) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($2.65) by ($0.56). Avis Budget Group had a negative return on equity of 480.48% and a net margin of 10.05%. The firm had revenue of $2.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $7.72 earnings per share. Avis Budget Group's quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Avis Budget Group, Inc. will post 13.55 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on CAR. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Avis Budget Group from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $118.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Avis Budget Group from $202.00 to $183.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Northcoast Research raised Avis Budget Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $155.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Avis Budget Group from $190.00 to $187.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Avis Budget Group from $145.00 to $117.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $164.57.

Avis Budget Group Profile

Avis Budget Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides car and truck rentals, car sharing, and ancillary products and services to businesses and consumers in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia, and Australasia. It operates the Avis brand, that offers vehicle rental and other mobility solutions to the premium commercial and leisure segments of the travel industry; and the Zipcar brand, a car sharing network, as well as the Budget brand, a supplier of vehicle rental and other mobility solutions focused primarily on more value-conscious customers comprising Budget car rental, and Budget Truck, a local, and one-way truck and cargo van rental businesses with a fleet of approximately 19,000 vehicles, which are rented through a network of dealer-operated and company-operated locations that serve the light commercial and consumer sectors in the continental United States.