AutoNation (AN) to Release Earnings on Wednesday

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) is scheduled to post its quarterly earnings results before the market opens on Wednesday, July 31st. Analysts expect AutoNation to post earnings of $4.70 per share for the quarter. Individual interested in participating in the company’s earnings conference call can do so using this link.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $4.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.45 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.49 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 42.44% and a net margin of 3.41%. AutoNation’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.05 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect AutoNation to post $18 EPS for the current fiscal year and $19 EPS for the next fiscal year.

AutoNation Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE AN opened at $178.07 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.44, a PEG ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $167.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.01. AutoNation has a 52-week low of $123.81 and a 52-week high of $182.81.

AutoNation announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Friday, April 26th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 14.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at AutoNation

In other news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 23,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.29, for a total transaction of $4,083,789.87. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,980,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $685,794,659.43. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.21, for a total value of $17,621,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly 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 SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 23,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.29, for a total value of $4,083,789.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,980,467 shares in the company, valued at $685,794,659.43. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Guggenheim boosted their price target on AutoNation from $169.00 to $187.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $142.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $153.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AutoNation presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $184.43.

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.