Victory Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH)

Victory Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in Sonic Automotive, Inc. (NYSE:SAH) by 13.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 82,620 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,857 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.24% of Sonic Automotive worth $5,234,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SAH. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Sonic Automotive by 515.4% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. raised its stake in Sonic Automotive by 100.3% in the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 1,196 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the fourth quarter valued at about $72,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Sonic Automotive in the fourth quarter valued at about $244,000. Finally, Pacific Global Investment Management Co. raised its stake in Sonic Automotive by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Pacific Global Investment Management Co. now owns 4,554 shares of the company’s stock valued at $288,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. 46.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Sonic Automotive from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $74.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com raised Sonic Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Sonic Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Stephens increased their price objective on Sonic Automotive from $83.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $79.20.

Sonic Automotive Stock Down 1.3 %

Sonic Automotive stock opened at $58.87 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.53 and a beta of 1.70. Sonic Automotive, Inc. has a 52 week low of $47.82 and a 52 week high of $76.78. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $69.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75.

Sonic Automotive (NYSE:SAH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.05. Sonic Automotive had a return on equity of 19.96% and a net margin of 1.52%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sonic Automotive, Inc. will post 6.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Sonic Automotive Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Sonic Automotive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.65%.

About Sonic Automotive

Sonic Automotive, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It operates in three segments, Franchised Dealerships, EchoPark, and Powersports. The Franchised Dealerships segment is involved in the sale of new and used cars and light trucks, and replacement parts; provision of vehicle maintenance, manufacturer warranty repair, and paint and collision repair services; and arrangement of extended warranties, service contracts, financing, insurance, and other aftermarket products for its guests.