Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Upgraded by Morgan Stanley to Equal Weight

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) was upgraded by Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a $240.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $190.00. Morgan Stanley’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 4.24% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on ABG. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on 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, StockNews.com downgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $237.75.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Performance

Shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock opened at $230.24 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $235.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $229.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 1.25. The company has a market cap of $4.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.39 and a beta of 1.16. Asbury Automotive Group has a one year low of $178.40 and a one year high of $277.13.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Asbury Automotive Group

In other news, major shareholder Impactive Capital Lp sold 8,353 shares of the company’s 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 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Asbury Automotive Group news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 56,834 shares in the company, valued at $12,911,548.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Impactive Capital Lp sold 8,353 shares of Asbury Automotive Group 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 2,008,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $453,211,473.87. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group in the second quarter worth $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 292 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group during the second quarter worth $155,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in Asbury Automotive Group during the fourth quarter worth about $162,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Asbury Automotive Group in the second quarter worth $190,000.

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.