Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday. The stock had previously closed at $61.26, but opened at $63.76. Sonic Automotive shares last traded at $62.98, with a volume of 4,290 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on SAH shares. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Sonic Automotive from $87.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Sonic Automotive from $72.00 to $64.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Stephens set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Sonic Automotive in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $72.00 to $57.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Sonic Automotive from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sonic Automotive presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $90.12.

Sonic Automotive Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a PE ratio of 9.96 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.10.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.19 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 15th. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Paul P. Rusnak acquired 12,555 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $59.90 per share, for a total transaction of $752,044.50. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 5,176,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $310,088,882.40. This represents a 0.24% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 76,776 shares of company stock worth $4,584,694. 43.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Sonic Automotive

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of SAH. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 106.2% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 27,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,328,000 after purchasing an additional 14,352 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 80.5% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 37,576 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,577,000 after purchasing an additional 16,753 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 64.4% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 131,302 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,003,000 after purchasing an additional 51,420 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Sonic Automotive by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,313,857 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,088,000 after purchasing an additional 48,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sonic Automotive in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,799,000. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sonic Automotive Company Profile

Sonic Automotive, Inc is a U.S.-based automotive retailer headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company operates franchised dealerships that sell new and pre-owned vehicles from a range of automobile manufacturers, along with related automotive products and services.

Its dealership operations provide vehicle financing and insurance products, maintenance and repair services, replacement parts, and collision-repair services. Sonic Automotive also operates EchoPark Automotive, a used-vehicle business focused on offering pre-owned vehicles and related finance and service products through dedicated retail locations.

Founded in 1997 by automotive entrepreneur O.