Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $172.86.

Several analysts recently issued reports on CAR shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Avis Budget Group from $190.00 to $187.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Avis Budget Group from $195.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Northcoast Research raised Avis Budget Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Avis Budget Group from $202.00 to $183.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Avis Budget Group from $280.00 to $240.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Avis Budget Group

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Nomura Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 70.4% during the 1st quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 1,534,724 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $298,964,000 after acquiring an additional 634,040 shares during the period. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Avis Budget Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $62,892,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 1,573.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 362,965 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $64,799,000 after acquiring an additional 341,269 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Avis Budget Group by 140.2% during the 1st quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 294,248 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $57,320,000 after acquiring an additional 171,743 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Avis Budget Group during the 4th quarter valued at $30,234,000. Institutional investors own 96.35% of the company’s stock.

Avis Budget Group Trading Down 3.2 %

Shares of CAR opened at $102.00 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $117.15 and its 200 day moving average is $156.51. The company has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 2.22. Avis Budget Group has a 12-month low of $99.60 and a 12-month high of $244.95.

Avis Budget Group (NASDAQ:CAR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $7.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.15 by $2.95. The company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. Avis Budget Group had a negative return on equity of 696.69% and a net margin of 13.59%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $10.46 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Avis Budget Group will post 15.35 earnings per share for the current year.

About Avis Budget Group

Avis Budget Group, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides car and truck rentals, car sharing, and ancillary products and services to businesses and consumers in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia, and Australasia. It operates the Avis brand, that offers vehicle rental and other mobility solutions to the premium commercial and leisure segments of the travel industry; and the Zipcar brand, a car sharing network, as well as the Budget brand, a supplier of vehicle rental and other mobility solutions focused primarily on more value-conscious customers comprising Budget car rental, and Budget Truck, a local, and one-way truck and cargo van rental businesses with a fleet of approximately 19,000 vehicles, which are rented through a network of dealer-operated and company-operated locations that serve the light commercial and consumer sectors in the continental United States.