Axa S.A. Makes New Investment in Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM)

Axa S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 13,891 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $381,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Autohome by 4.9% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 7,448 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $195,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Autohome by 99.4% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,318 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 657 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its holdings in shares of Autohome by 88.9% in the 1st quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 1,700 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its position in shares of Autohome by 24.2% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 4,676 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $123,000 after buying an additional 912 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Autohome in the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ATHM shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Autohome from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Benchmark cut Autohome from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $28.00 price target (down previously from $31.00) on shares of Autohome in a research report on Friday, July 19th.

Autohome Price Performance

ATHM stock opened at $33.43 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $4.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.84 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $25.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.56. Autohome Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.89 and a 12 month high of $33.83.

Autohome (NYSE:ATHM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The information services provider reported $4.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $4.12. Autohome had a net margin of 25.81% and a return on equity of 8.19%. The business had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Autohome Inc. will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Autohome declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, September 4th that authorizes the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the information services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Autohome Company Profile

Autohome Inc operates as an online destination for automobile consumers in the People's Republic of China. The company delivers interactive content and tools to automobile consumers through its three websites, autohome.com.cn, che168.com, and ttpai.cn on PCs, mobile devices, mobile applications, and mini apps.