JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Price Target to $260.00

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) had its price target reduced by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $265.00 to $260.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 0.31% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on ABG. Stephens started coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $190.00 to $240.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Craig Hallum increased their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Asbury Automotive Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Asbury Automotive Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $256.20.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Up 7.1 %

Shares of NYSE ABG opened at $259.20 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $5.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.67 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $229.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $232.28. Asbury Automotive Group has a 1 year low of $195.09 and a 1 year high of $277.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.58 by ($0.23). The business had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 16.51% and a net margin of 2.16%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $8.12 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Asbury Automotive Group will post 25.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of Asbury Automotive Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.18, for a total transaction of $113,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 56,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,911,548.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, major shareholder Impactive Capital Lp sold 8,353 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 2,008,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $453,211,473.87. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 56,834 shares in the company, valued at $12,911,548.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Asbury Automotive Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 1.0% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,141 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,171,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Oak Associates Ltd. OH increased its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Oak Associates Ltd. OH now owns 3,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $831,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 3.2% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,843 shares of the company’s stock worth $440,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 0.5% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 10,980 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,588,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 0.3% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 24,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,819,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter.

Asbury Automotive Group Company 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.