JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises AutoNation (NYSE:AN) Price Target to $190.00

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) had its price target lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $160.00 to $190.00 in a research note released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on AN. Bank of America lifted their target price on AutoNation from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on AutoNation from $164.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of AutoNation from $169.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $194.25.

AutoNation Price Performance

Shares of AutoNation stock opened at $160.94 on Tuesday. AutoNation has a 52 week low of $123.81 and a 52 week high of $197.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The stock has a market cap of $6.48 billion, a PE ratio of 7.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.20. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $171.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $164.70.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by ($0.32). The business had revenue of $6.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.72 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 36.50% and a net margin of 2.93%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.29 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AutoNation will post 17.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In other news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.21, for a total transaction of $17,621,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,880,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $683,777,090.07. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.21, for a total transaction of $17,621,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,880,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $683,777,090.07. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 39,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.43, for a total transaction of $7,189,355.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,786,144 shares in the company, valued at $694,492,393.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 216,959 shares of company stock valued at $39,346,744. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AutoNation

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AN. First United Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in AutoNation during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of AutoNation by 90.6% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in AutoNation during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. 94.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

AutoNation Company Profile

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.