Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Takes $1.10 Million Position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 7,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,096,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the third quarter valued at $67,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 18.0% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 708 shares of the company's stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 17.9% in the 3rd quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 789 shares of the company's stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Impact Partnership Wealth LLC purchased a new position in AutoNation in the 3rd quarter worth about $128,000. 94.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total transaction of $1,669,866.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,267,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $659,640,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 10,804 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.56, for a total transaction of $1,669,866.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,267,860 shares of the company's stock, valued at $659,640,441.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Kimberly Dees sold 3,133 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.28, for a total value of $477,093.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 464 shares in the company, valued at $70,657.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 121,279 shares of company stock worth $19,361,962. Corporate insiders own 0.74% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on AutoNation from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on AutoNation in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $185.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised shares of AutoNation from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of AutoNation from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $173.00.

AutoNation Stock Performance

AutoNation stock traded up $1.25 on Wednesday, reaching $159.52. 529,969 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 443,468. The stock has a market cap of $6.65 billion, a PE ratio of 7.04, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $153.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.42. AutoNation, Inc. has a twelve month low of $123.81 and a twelve month high of $182.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $5.02 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.85 by $0.17. AutoNation had a net margin of 3.79% and a return on equity of 48.76%. The firm had revenue of $6.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.37 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.92 EPS for the current year.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.