Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) Shares Bought by GCM Grosvenor Holdings LLC

GCM Grosvenor Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) by 250.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 73,000 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 52,191 shares during the quarter. Asbury Automotive Group makes up about 2.4% of GCM Grosvenor Holdings LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. GCM Grosvenor Holdings LLC owned approximately 0.36% of Asbury Automotive Group worth $16,635,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Asbury Automotive Group in the fourth quarter worth $67,417,000. Eminence Capital LP lifted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 27.2% in the fourth quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 328,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,811,000 after buying an additional 70,089 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 7.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,056,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,818,000 after purchasing an additional 69,975 shares in the last quarter. Khrom Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the second quarter valued at about $14,572,000. Finally, Lawson Kroeker Investment Management Inc. NE raised its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 107.7% during the second quarter. Lawson Kroeker Investment Management Inc. NE now owns 47,444 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,811,000 after purchasing an additional 24,603 shares in the last quarter.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:ABG opened at $227.95 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $178.40 and a fifty-two week high of $277.13. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $236.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $229.76. The stock has a market cap of $4.60 billion, a PE ratio of 8.31 and a beta of 1.16.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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). The firm had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.51% and a return on equity of 17.93%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $8.95 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. will post 26.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ABG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Stephens initiated coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $225.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Asbury Automotive Group Profile

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.