Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) Receives Average Rating of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) has earned an average rating of “Reduce” from the ten analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a hold rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $125.25.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 price target on Avis Budget Group in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised Avis Budget Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Zacks Research raised Avis Budget Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Pentwater Capital Management L sold 3,347 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $438.74, for a total value of $1,468,462.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 6,177,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,710,140,854. This trade represents a 0.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Edward P. Linnen sold 9,483 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.32, for a total value of $1,728,940.56. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 37,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,915,762.24. The trade was a 20.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 16,299 shares of company stock valued at $3,836,012 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 50.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Avis Budget Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 37.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,964,807 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $380,444,000 after purchasing an additional 804,814 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 38.1% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,975,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $253,519,000 after purchasing an additional 545,574 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 46.6% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,290,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $207,142,000 after purchasing an additional 409,761 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV lifted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 440.2% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 1,035,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $166,195,000 after purchasing an additional 843,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 713,127 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $120,554,000 after purchasing an additional 7,318 shares during the last quarter. 96.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Avis Budget Group Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of Avis Budget Group stock opened at $173.86 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $225.05 and a 200 day moving average of $156.70. Avis Budget Group has a 12 month low of $85.96 and a 12 month high of $847.70. The firm has a market cap of $6.14 billion, a PE ratio of -9.13 and a beta of 1.87.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported ($8.01) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($6.82) by ($1.19). The company had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($14.35) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Avis Budget Group will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Avis Budget Group

Avis Budget Group, Inc operates as a leading global provider of vehicle rental and mobility solutions. Through its two core brands, Avis® and Budget®, the company offers a broad range of rental options including daily, weekly and monthly car rentals for leisure and business travelers. In addition to traditional airport and off-airport car rental services, Avis Budget Group delivers innovative mobility platforms such as car-sharing programs and connected fleet solutions designed to meet the evolving needs of corporate, government and individual customers.

The company’s roots trace back to Avis Rent a Car, founded in 1946, and Budget Rent a Car, established in 1958.