Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Sells 17,807 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 7.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 235,635 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,807 shares during the quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.59% of AutoNation worth $42,160,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AN. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in AutoNation by 33.8% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,899 shares of the company’s stock worth $340,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Ellsworth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in AutoNation by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 4,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $776,000 after acquiring an additional 494 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. acquired a new stake in AutoNation during the 3rd quarter worth $313,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda lifted its stake in shares of AutoNation by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda now owns 1,708 shares of the company’s stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of AutoNation by 28.1% in the 3rd quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 802 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. 94.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on AN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on AutoNation from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of AutoNation in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised shares of AutoNation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $145.00 to $200.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on AutoNation from $187.00 to $181.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AutoNation currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $200.38.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 39,194 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,786,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,492,393.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.06, for a total value of $91,030.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,825,338 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $696,441,036.28. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 39,194 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 3,786,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,492,393.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 93,256 shares of company stock valued at $17,641,954. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

AutoNation Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:AN traded up $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $169.14. 289,791 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 415,333. The company has a market cap of $6.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 1.19. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $171.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. AutoNation, Inc. has a one year low of $123.81 and a one year high of $197.18.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.31 by ($0.32). AutoNation had a return on equity of 36.50% and a net margin of 2.93%. The business had revenue of $6.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.29 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.57 EPS for the current year.

About AutoNation

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.