Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) Stock

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) had its price target increased by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $97.00 to $99.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would suggest a potential downside of 34.21% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Barclays decreased their price target on Avis Budget Group from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $85.00 target price on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Avis Budget Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Avis Budget Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Avis Budget Group from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $125.25.

Avis Budget Group Stock Performance

CAR traded down $0.60 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $150.48. The stock had a trading volume of 34,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,012,251. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $210.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $154.51. Avis Budget Group has a twelve month low of $85.96 and a twelve month high of $847.70. The company has a market capitalization of $5.32 billion, a PE ratio of -7.90 and a beta of 1.91.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported ($8.01) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($6.82) by ($1.19). The firm had revenue of $2.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($14.35) EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Avis Budget Group will post 3.46 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Lynn Krominga sold 1,950 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.54, for a total value of $178,503.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Pentwater Capital Management L sold 3,347 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider owned 6,177,100 shares in the company, valued at $2,710,140,854. This represents a 0.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 18,249 shares of company stock valued at $4,014,515. 50.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CAR. UBS Group AG lifted its position in shares of Avis Budget Group by 37.3% during 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 buying an additional 804,814 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Avis Budget Group by 38.1% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,975,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $253,519,000 after acquiring an additional 545,574 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 46.6% during the third 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 in the last quarter. ING Groep NV grew its position in shares of Avis Budget Group by 440.2% in the third 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 period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Avis Budget Group by 1.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 713,127 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $120,554,000 after purchasing an additional 7,318 shares in the last quarter. 96.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Avis Budget Group Company Profile

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.