Diligent Investors LLC Makes New Investment in Avis Budget Group, Inc. $CAR

Diligent Investors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,488 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $421,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CAR. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC bought a new position in Avis Budget Group in the first quarter valued at $18,975,000. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Avis Budget Group during the 1st quarter worth about $10,414,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 92.1% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 236,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $39,948,000 after buying an additional 113,278 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Avis Budget Group by 281.1% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 123,176 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $9,349,000 after acquiring an additional 90,851 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Shellback Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Avis Budget Group in the first quarter valued at about $3,795,000. 96.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avis Budget Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CAR opened at $154.56 on Friday. Avis Budget Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $54.03 and a 52 week high of $212.81. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $159.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $133.84. The firm has a market cap of $5.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.44 and a beta of 2.03.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last issued its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.41 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Avis Budget Group, Inc. will post 8.91 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Edward P. Linnen sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.83, for a total transaction of $1,568,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 40,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,416,699.45. This represents a 19.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Bernardo Hees sold 402,200 shares of Avis Budget Group stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 116,521 shares in the company, valued at $18,246,023.39. This trade represents a 77.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 52.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $196.00 price target (up from $130.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays increased their price objective on Avis Budget Group from $105.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “sell” rating and issued a $105.00 target price (up from $87.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Zacks Research raised shares of Avis Budget Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $113.00 price target (down previously from $120.00) on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $143.80.

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.