Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) Stock Has Average Target Price of $97.00 According to Analysts

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the ten analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $90.12.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on SAH shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $91.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive from $72.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $72.00 to $64.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $107.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $87.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday.

Key Stories Impacting Sonic Automotive

Here are the key news stories impacting Sonic Automotive this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder Paul Rusnak bought 21,645 shares for approximately $1.29 million on October 1, 27,756 shares for about $1.66 million on October 5, and another 1,119 shares for roughly $67,000 on October 6. The purchases increased his already substantial position to more than 5.15 million shares and may signal confidence that SAH is undervalued after its decline. Insider buying report
• Positive Sentiment: UBS maintained a “Buy” rating on Sonic Automotive, suggesting it still sees potential upside despite reducing its price target to $74 from $107. The continued Buy rating may help support the shares. UBS price target update
• Neutral Sentiment: Sonic Automotive scheduled its third-quarter 2026 earnings release for October 29 before the market opens, followed by a management conference call. Investors will be watching dealership demand, used-vehicle trends, margins, and guidance for signs that the recent weakness is temporary. Third-quarter earnings announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays retained its “Hold” rating, underscoring the mixed analyst view on SAH. The lack of broad conviction could limit gains until the company reports its next results. Barclays rating
• Negative Sentiment: UBS’s large price-target reduction, despite retaining its Buy rating, signals that analysts have lowered their assumptions for Sonic Automotive’s earnings or valuation. This offsets some of the benefit from the insider purchases.

Sonic Automotive Price Performance

NYSE:SAH opened at $61.40 on Tuesday. Sonic Automotive has a one year low of $54.11 and a one year high of $113.67. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a PE ratio of 9.79, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $74.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $78.22.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $3.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 20.75% and a net margin of 1.37%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.19 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Sonic Automotive will post 6.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Sonic Automotive’s payout ratio is currently 26.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak bought 27,756 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $59.76 per share, with a total value of $1,658,698.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,149,401 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $307,728,203.76. This represents a 0.54% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have bought a total of 50,520 shares of company stock valued at $3,013,604 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 43.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sonic Automotive by 15.5% in the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive during the 2nd quarter worth about $373,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Sonic Automotive in the second quarter valued at approximately $88,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Sonic Automotive by 14.5% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $390,000 after buying an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sonic Automotive during the second quarter worth about $4,799,000. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc is an automotive retailer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company operates franchised dealerships that sell new and used cars and light trucks from a range of manufacturers, along with related automotive products and services.

Its dealership operations provide vehicle financing and insurance products, parts and maintenance services, collision repair, and other after-sales support. Sonic Automotive also operates EchoPark Automotive, a used-vehicle retail business focused on providing a broad selection of pre-owned vehicles and related services.

Founded in 1997 by automotive entrepreneur O.