Stephens Inc. AR Has $6.21 Million Stock Position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Stephens Inc. AR reduced its position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 35.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,697 shares of the company’s stock after selling 18,854 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR owned about 0.09% of AutoNation worth $6,208,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AN. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of AutoNation by 90.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AutoNation in the second quarter worth about $37,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 1st quarter worth about $57,000. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of AutoNation by 498.5% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 407 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of AutoNation during the 2nd quarter valued at about $103,000. 94.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 39,194 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.43, for a total value of $7,189,355.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,786,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $694,492,393.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 500 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $182.06, for a total transaction of $91,030.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,825,338 shares in the company, valued at approximately $696,441,036.28. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 39,194 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,786,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $694,492,393.92. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.74% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoNation Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of AN stock opened at $156.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 1.21. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1 year low of $129.32 and a 1 year high of $197.18. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $168.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $167.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.31 by ($0.32). The company had revenue of $6.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. AutoNation had a return on equity of 32.01% and a net margin of 2.74%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $6.29 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.27 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Stephens assumed coverage on AutoNation in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $187.00 to $181.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of AutoNation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $145.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $200.43.

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.