Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE:ABG) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the six research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $255.20.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ABG. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Asbury Automotive Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Seaport Res Ptn cut Asbury Automotive Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $260.00 to $255.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $310.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Craig Hallum boosted their price objective on shares of Asbury Automotive Group from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Asbury Automotive Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ABG. Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group during the second quarter valued at $212,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Asbury Automotive Group by 3.8% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 25,823 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,884,000 after purchasing an additional 945 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Asbury Automotive Group by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 44,382 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,113,000 after purchasing an additional 2,205 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 8.3% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 1,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in Asbury Automotive Group by 75.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $967,000 after purchasing an additional 1,802 shares in the last quarter.

Asbury Automotive Group Stock Up 4.9 %

Shares of ABG opened at $256.82 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.53 and a beta of 1.19. Asbury Automotive Group has a one year low of $195.09 and a one year high of $277.13. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $251.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $240.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The company reported $6.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.58 by ($0.23). Asbury Automotive Group had a return on equity of 16.51% and a net margin of 2.16%. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $8.12 earnings per share. Asbury Automotive Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Asbury Automotive Group will post 25.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Asbury Automotive Group

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.