AutoNation, Inc. $AN Shares Sold by South Dakota Investment Council

South Dakota Investment Council decreased its holdings in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,347 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,803 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council owned approximately 0.12% of AutoNation worth $9,921,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC raised its holdings in AutoNation by 39.1% during the third quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 6,783 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,484,000 after purchasing an additional 1,908 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 329.7% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 82,094 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,960,000 after buying an additional 62,988 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position in shares of AutoNation by 379.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 40,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,853,000 after buying an additional 32,024 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its stake in AutoNation by 25.7% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 8,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,925,000 after acquiring an additional 1,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd lifted its position in AutoNation by 82.5% in the third quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 3,356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $734,000 after acquiring an additional 1,517 shares during the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AutoNation Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AN opened at $193.19 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $208.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $210.71. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $148.33 and a 1-year high of $228.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The company has a market cap of $6.71 billion, a PE ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 0.89.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 6th. The company reported $5.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.91 by $0.17. AutoNation had a return on equity of 31.69% and a net margin of 2.35%.The company had revenue of $6.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.21 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.97 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that AutoNation, Inc. will post 18.15 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on AN. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on AutoNation from $233.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Stephens upped their target price on AutoNation from $228.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Barclays cut their price target on AutoNation from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Evercore boosted their price objective on AutoNation from $240.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of AutoNation from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $235.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AutoNation has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $248.67.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc is the largest automotive retailer in the United States, operating a network of franchised new vehicle dealerships, pre-owned vehicle superstores and collision-repair centers. The company offers a comprehensive range of automotive products and services, including the sale of new cars and light trucks from leading manufacturers, certified pre-owned vehicles and a wide selection of used models. In addition to retail vehicle sales, AutoNation provides financing, insurance and extended service contracts through its in-house financial services division, as well as genuine and aftermarket parts, factory-recommended maintenance and collision-repair services.

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, AutoNation was founded in 1996 by entrepreneur H.