State of Tennessee Department of Treasury Has $2.30 Million Stock Holdings in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

State of Tennessee Department of Treasury boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG - Free Report) by 47.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,442 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 3,042 shares during the quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury's holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $2,295,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ABG. GoodHaven Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,916,000. Magnolia Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Magnolia Group LLC now owns 149,123 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,241,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 52.3% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 7,805 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,897,000 after acquiring an additional 2,680 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 211,766 shares of the company's stock worth $51,465,000 after acquiring an additional 3,273 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on ABG. Craig Hallum downgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Asbury Automotive Group from $290.00 to $250.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Citigroup started coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $236.00 target price for the company. Finally, Stephens increased their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $220.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $258.50.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of ABG traded up $3.99 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $222.34. The stock had a trading volume of 122,961 shares, compared to its average volume of 204,355. The firm has a market cap of $4.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.34 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $231.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $249.30. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $201.68 and a twelve month high of $312.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $6.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $6.84 by ($0.02). Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 16.29%. The firm had revenue of $4.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $7.21 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.28 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Asbury Automotive Group

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, COO Daniel Clara sold 1,217 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.64, for a total value of $361,010.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 3,747 shares in the company, valued at $1,111,510.08. This trade represents a 24.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.59% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Asbury Automotive Group Profile

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.