State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 5,027 Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lowered its position in Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 38.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,179 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,027 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Asbury Automotive Group were worth $1,864,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 26.4% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 20,221 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,768,000 after purchasing an additional 4,224 shares in the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC increased its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 11.7% during the 1st quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 21,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,961,000 after purchasing an additional 2,198 shares in the last quarter. Natixis bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 1st quarter worth about $896,000. Boston Partners bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the 1st quarter worth about $878,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 147.1% during the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 18,037 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,063,000 after purchasing an additional 10,737 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $225.25.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of ABG stock opened at $224.95 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $236.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $229.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $4.54 billion, a PE ratio of 8.20 and a beta of 1.16. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $178.40 and a 12-month high of $277.13.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The company reported $6.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.31 by ($0.91). Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 17.93% and a net margin of 2.51%. The company had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $8.95 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Asbury Automotive Group

In other Asbury Automotive Group news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total value of $113,590.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 56,834 shares in the company, valued at $12,911,548.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total transaction of $113,590.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 56,834 shares in the company, valued at $12,911,548.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Impactive Capital Lp sold 8,353 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.63, for a total transaction of $1,884,687.39. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,008,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $453,211,473.87. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

About Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services.