Bank of Montreal Can Has $1.26 Million Position in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Bank of Montreal Can cut its position in shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 49.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,396 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,217 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $1,261,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AN. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in AutoNation by 90.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of AutoNation during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in AutoNation in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Denali Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AutoNation by 79.7% in the 1st quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in AutoNation during the first quarter worth approximately $57,000. 94.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at AutoNation

In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.21, for a total transaction of $17,621,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,880,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $683,777,090.07. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other AutoNation news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.21, for a total transaction of $17,621,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,880,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $683,777,090.07. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 53,562 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.45, for a total value of $10,361,568.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,825,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $740,108,361.10. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 216,959 shares of company stock valued at $39,346,744 over the last ninety days. 0.74% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AutoNation Price Performance

AN stock opened at $171.25 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $173.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $167.47. AutoNation, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.81 and a 12 month high of $197.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The firm has a market cap of $6.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 1.19.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.31 by ($0.32). The firm had revenue of $6.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. AutoNation had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 36.50%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.29 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AN shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on AutoNation from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Bank of America upped their price objective on AutoNation from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised AutoNation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $200.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of AutoNation from $164.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AutoNation has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.75.

About AutoNation

AutoNation, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Premium Luxury. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and parts and services, such as automotive repair and maintenance, and wholesale parts and collision services.