Weiss Ratings Reiterates Sell (D) Rating for Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating for Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR), reflecting ongoing concerns over the company's stock performance.
• Avis Budget Group reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.02, while revenue was slightly above expectations at $3.04 billion.
• Multiple brokerages have differing views on the stock, with Zacks Research upgrading to "hold" while Deutsche Bank raised its price target to $196.00, indicating a wide range of analyst sentiments.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d)" rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on CAR. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Avis Budget Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $196.00 price objective (up from $130.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Bank of America reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $113.00 price target (down from $120.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Avis Budget Group from $105.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $155.00 target price on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $143.80.

Avis Budget Group Price Performance

Shares of Avis Budget Group stock traded down $2.90 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $146.32. The company had a trading volume of 787,675 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,207,198. The company's 50-day moving average is $157.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.09. Avis Budget Group has a twelve month low of $54.03 and a twelve month high of $212.81. The company has a market cap of $5.15 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.31 and a beta of 2.03.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.02 by ($1.92). The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.41 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Avis Budget Group will post 8.91 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Avis Budget Group news, EVP Edward P. Linnen sold 10,000 shares of Avis Budget Group stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.83, for a total value of $1,568,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 40,915 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,416,699.45. The trade was a 19.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Bernardo Hees sold 402,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total transaction of $62,980,498.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 116,521 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,246,023.39. This trade represents a 77.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 52.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avis Budget Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CAR. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Avis Budget Group by 106.9% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 478 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 32.6% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 228 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 421.1% during the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 839 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 399.5% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 909 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 727 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 19.6% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 427 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.35% of the company's stock.

Avis Budget Group Company Profile

Avis Budget Group, Inc engages in the provision of vehicle sharing and rental services. It operates through the following segments: Americas, International, and Corporate and Other. The Americas segment includes the vehicle rental and car sharing operations in North America, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean.

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