Cwm LLC Sells 71 Shares of AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN)

Cwm LLC lessened its stake in AutoNation, Inc. (NYSE:AN) by 6.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 984 shares of the company’s stock after selling 71 shares during the period. Cwm LLC’s holdings in AutoNation were worth $176,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AN. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System grew its position in AutoNation by 54.1% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 51,743 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,568,000 after acquiring an additional 18,157 shares in the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC bought a new position in AutoNation during the 1st quarter worth about $1,484,000. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in AutoNation during the second quarter valued at approximately $838,000. BOKF NA raised its position in shares of AutoNation by 39.1% in the 1st quarter. BOKF NA now owns 53,461 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,808,000 after acquiring an additional 15,015 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caxton Associates LP purchased a new stake in AutoNation during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,083,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.62% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded AutoNation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $200.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of AutoNation from $220.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Stephens assumed coverage on AutoNation in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of AutoNation from $187.00 to $181.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of AutoNation from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $200.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 39,194 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.43, for a total transaction of $7,189,355.42. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,786,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $694,492,393.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 53,562 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Edward S. Lampert sold 39,194 shares of AutoNation stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.43, for a total transaction of $7,189,355.42. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,786,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $694,492,393.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 93,256 shares of company stock worth $17,641,954. Corporate insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

AutoNation Stock Performance

AN opened at $162.00 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $6.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.19. AutoNation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.81 and a 1-year high of $197.18. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $171.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $167.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.21.

AutoNation (NYSE:AN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by ($0.32). AutoNation had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 36.50%. The company had revenue of $6.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.29 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AutoNation, Inc. will post 17.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AutoNation Company Profile

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.