Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Hits New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Bank of America raised their price target on the stock from $80.00 to $94.00. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the stock. Sonic Automotive traded as high as $78.11 and last traded at $77.14, with a volume of 203139 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $75.09.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on SAH. Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $93.00 to $74.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup started coverage on Sonic Automotive in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $64.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Sonic Automotive from $80.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Benchmark started coverage on Sonic Automotive in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. They set a "buy" rating and a $76.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Sonic Automotive from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Sonic Automotive has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $74.71.

Insider Activity

In other Sonic Automotive news, President Jeff Dyke sold 576 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $40,331.52. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 605,393 shares of the company's stock, valued at $42,389,617.86. This trade represents a 0.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders sold 50,000 shares of company stock worth $3,502,062. 42.65% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,557,344 shares of the company's stock valued at $98,658,000 after purchasing an additional 20,058 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Sonic Automotive by 52.1% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 80,957 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,129,000 after buying an additional 27,726 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Sonic Automotive by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 291,133 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,443,000 after acquiring an additional 18,232 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its position in Sonic Automotive by 54.4% in the fourth quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 45,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,851,000 after acquiring an additional 15,849 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its stake in Sonic Automotive by 93.1% during the fourth quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 20,010 shares of the company's stock worth $1,268,000 after acquiring an additional 9,646 shares in the last quarter. 46.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

The business's fifty day moving average price is $67.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market cap of $2.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.19, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.02.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.02. Sonic Automotive had a net margin of 1.69% and a return on equity of 19.42%. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.36 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Sonic Automotive's dividend payout ratio is 19.94%.

About Sonic Automotive

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.