Short Interest in Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) Increases By 11.1%

Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,100,000 shares, an increase of 11.1% from the August 31st total of 2,790,000 shares. Approximately 9.0% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 627,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.9 days.

Avis Budget Group Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:CAR traded up $1.97 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $87.59. The company had a trading volume of 815,845 shares, compared to its average volume of 720,774. The stock has a market cap of $3.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 2.14. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $85.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $102.50. Avis Budget Group has a 52-week low of $65.73 and a 52-week high of $204.77.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The business services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.60 by ($2.19). Avis Budget Group had a net margin of 6.58% and a negative return on equity of 230.71%. The company had revenue of $3.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $11.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Avis Budget Group will post 7.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Avis Budget Group from $155.00 to $146.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Avis Budget Group from $120.00 to $95.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Avis Budget Group from $120.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Avis Budget Group in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $105.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Avis Budget Group from $205.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $138.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of Avis Budget Group in the second quarter worth $19,978,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 70,663.6% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 7,784 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $954,000 after buying an additional 7,773 shares in the last quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Avis Budget Group during the first quarter valued at about $1,069,000. Gabelli Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Avis Budget Group in the first quarter worth about $1,898,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Avis Budget Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,234,000. 96.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Avis Budget Group

Avis Budget Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides car and truck rentals, car sharing, and ancillary products and services to businesses and consumers in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia, and Australasia. It operates the Avis brand, that offers vehicle rental and other mobility solutions to the premium commercial and leisure segments of the travel industry; and the Zipcar brand, a car sharing network, as well as the Budget brand, a supplier of vehicle rental and other mobility solutions focused primarily on more value-conscious customers comprising Budget car rental, and Budget Truck, a local, and one-way truck and cargo van rental businesses with a fleet of approximately 19,000 vehicles, which are rented through a network of dealer-operated and company-operated locations that serve the light commercial and consumer sectors in the continental United States.