AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Stock Price Down 4% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• AutoNation shares fell 4% to approximately $187.64 during Thursday trading, with volume 63% below the stock’s average daily level.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive: 10 analysts rate the stock Buy and two rate it Hold, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $250.
• The company recently beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $5.56 in EPS versus the $5.48 consensus, though revenue declined 0.6% year over year to $6.93 billion.

AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 4% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $193.81 and last traded at $187.6440. 155,438 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 418,086 shares. The stock had previously closed at $195.37.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stephens boosted their price objective on AutoNation from $220.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $248.00 target price on shares of AutoNation in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on AutoNation from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of AutoNation from $287.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Northcoast Research upgraded shares of AutoNation from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $240.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $250.00.

AutoNation Stock Down 9.5%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $205.60 and a 200-day moving average of $197.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.18. The company has a market cap of $5.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.72.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $5.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.48 by $0.08. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.24% and a net margin of 2.82%.The business had revenue of $6.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.26 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 21.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Lisa Lutoff-Perlo sold 900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.00, for a total value of $198,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 7,989 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,757,580. This trade represents a 10.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoNation

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AN. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 2nd quarter worth $256,000. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in AutoNation by 24.6% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 3,230 shares of the company's stock valued at $600,000 after acquiring an additional 638 shares during the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its stake in AutoNation by 56.0% in the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 39,379 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,316,000 after acquiring an additional 14,134 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its position in AutoNation by 72.8% during the second quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,638 shares of the company's stock valued at $676,000 after purchasing an additional 1,533 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in AutoNation by 5,900.0% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 1,475 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.62% of the company's stock.

About AutoNation

AutoNation, Inc is a leading automotive retailer in the United States. The company sells new and used vehicles through a network of franchised dealerships and provides automotive services including vehicle financing, insurance products, maintenance, repair, parts, and collision-repair services.

In addition to its manufacturer-branded dealerships, AutoNation operates AutoNation USA locations focused primarily on used vehicles and offers digital tools that allow customers to research, purchase, finance, and service vehicles online.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.