Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) Shares Sold by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC lowered its stake in Autohome Inc. (NYSE:ATHM) by 5.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 64,966 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 3,465 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned about 0.05% of Autohome worth $2,119,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ATHM. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Autohome by 28.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 80,416 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $2,207,000 after purchasing an additional 18,030 shares during the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in Autohome during the 2nd quarter worth about $208,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Autohome during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Autohome in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,497,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Autohome by 23.5% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,098 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $195,000 after acquiring an additional 1,351 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.08% of the company’s stock.

Autohome Price Performance

ATHM stock opened at $26.54 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.20 and a beta of 0.20. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $27.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.44. Autohome Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.89 and a 12 month high of $34.70.

Autohome announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, September 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $0.00 in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the information services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Autohome Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a Variable dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $1.15 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 5.8%. This is a boost from Autohome’s previous Variable dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Autohome’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ATHM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Autohome to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Autohome to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. CLSA cut shares of Autohome from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Autohome from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Autohome presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $28.00.

About Autohome

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.