Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) Receives $237.75 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the five brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $251.20.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ABG. Bank of America decreased their target price 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. Stephens started coverage on Asbury Automotive Group in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $216.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com cut Asbury Automotive Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Asbury Automotive Group from $230.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Asbury Automotive Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $190.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th.

Asbury Automotive Group Trading Up 4.1 %

ABG opened at $234.99 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. Asbury Automotive Group has a 52 week low of $178.40 and a 52 week high of $277.13. The stock has a market cap of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of 8.56 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50 day moving average of $229.85 and a 200-day moving average of $231.06.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The company reported $6.40 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.31 by ($0.91). The firm had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.31 billion. Asbury Automotive Group had a net margin of 2.51% and a return on equity of 17.93%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $8.95 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group will post 26.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Impactive Capital Lp sold 8,353 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.63, for a total transaction of $1,884,687.39. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,008,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $453,211,473.87. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Asbury Automotive Group news, CEO David W. Hult sold 500 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 56,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,911,548.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Impactive Capital Lp sold 8,353 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $225.63, for a total transaction of $1,884,687.39. Following the sale, the insider now directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ABG. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,319,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $521,771,000 after acquiring an additional 10,656 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 7.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,056,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,818,000 after purchasing an additional 69,975 shares during the period. Eminence Capital LP increased its position in Asbury Automotive Group by 41.5% in the second quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 498,542 shares of the company’s stock worth $113,603,000 after buying an additional 146,246 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 4.1% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 197,765 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,065,000 after buying an additional 7,754 shares during the period. Finally, Magnolia Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. Magnolia Group LLC now owns 110,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,066,000 after acquiring an additional 8,000 shares during the period.

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.